Haunted Halls
by Sirina77
Summary: An average chase through the Ghost Zone goes awry and Danny gets sucked into a portal to another world, unable to get back home. As he struggles to find a way back he comes to appreciate this hero-glorifying society he's found himself in, but he'll soon learn that the villains of this world are not to be underestimated.
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's Note: Not going to be doing one of these author's notes on every chapter. I don't like reading them, so I try not to write them. Just wanted to state what wouldn't fit in the summary for those who are looking for specifics.**_

 _ **This is not a romance focussed story**_

 _ **Continuity takes place before Phantom Planet and starts between Seasons 2 and 3 of Hero Aca (Before the Training Camp Arc)**_

 _ **Rated T for occasional swearing and some potential violence and angst**_

 _ **I have not read the Hero Aca manga, I only watch the show, so no spoilers, pls**_

 _ **No set update schedule**_

 _ **Again, I don't expect to write another one of these notes for the duration of this story. Thanks for showing interest and I hope you like what you read.**_

A cool Autumn breeze drifted through the night air. All was silent, but for the dry leaves rustling along the pavement. Indoors, the citizens of Amity Park were curled up under their blankets, unaware of the goings on in the dead of night. All but one.

Danny had been stirred by a sudden and all too familiar chill down his spine. With an exasperated groan, he sat up and hastily rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He transformed, his pajamas vanishing in a ring of white light, instantly replaced by a sleek, black jumpsuit, then phased through the floor. His ghost sense hummed in the back of his head, drawing him nearer to its source until he was floating, invisibly in the basement his parents had long since transformed into a haphazard lab of sorts.

The open Ghost Portal lit the room in an eerie neon green glow that reflected off of the multitude of metallic surfaces like an inverted disco ball. Rummaging through a box on the floor of the lab was a green skinned figure with long white hair, wearing a black, floor length coat and draped in a white cloak. Danny sighed and let his invisibility drop.

"Alright, Technus, what's in the Fenton junk heap that you couldn't wait until a decent hour to come steal?"

The ghost whipped around to face the teen, a look of shock not well hidden behind his shades. "You! How did _you_ find me?"

Danny raised a brow. "Uh, ghost sense. Same as always. Did you really expect to get in here unnoticed, just because it's past 3 AM?"

"No, you fool." Technus reached into his pocket and pulled out a small disk that had a few stray wires poking out of the gaps in the metal surface. "This was supposed to shield my presence from you. Why isn't it working?" He shook the device for a moment, then proceeded to bang it against the wall.

"Have you tried turning it off and on again?" Danny mocked.

"Huh?" Technus blinked up at him, then looked back down at the device. His thumb flicked at the switch once, then again in the other direction. A light beeping sound chirped and Technus grinned, holding the disk over his head, proudly. "Success! Now, ghost child, I will be hidden from your detection and free to do as I please!"

Danny crossed his arms and floated in the air, not taking his agitated gaze off of the ghost. Technus didn't move.

"You can still see me, can't you?"

"Yup."

"Right…" Technus wilted slightly, knowing how this was likely to end. Impulsively, he reached out, grabbed the overflowing box of mechanical odds and ends and immediately turned and bolted through the portal.

"Hey!" Danny shouted, speeding after him. "Get back here with that, you lanky, overgrown packrat!"

The two sped through the Ghost Zone at speed, weaving and ducking around floating islands and avoiding the various doors that hung in the nothingness of the world. Every time Danny would almost get close enough to grab Technus' coat, the latter would make a hard turn and zoom off. Thankfully it looked like most of the Ghost Zone's residents were also sound asleep, so their chase wasn't noticed by many. The last thing Danny needed was to have to deal with other ghosts jumping into the fray, though most seemed to keep to themselves if they could help it. Danny was, however, an exception in many specter's books.

Just as he was getting close again, something hard barrelled into Danny's side and sent him tumbling into a floating brick wall. He looked up. "Oh you have _got_ to be kidding me. What the heck do _you_ want?"

"I am The Box Ghost!" the heavyset spirit proclaimed. "And I couldn't help but notice the lovely cardboard container the two of you were fighting over and I want in."

"In? In on what? It's just a bunch of junk from the lab." Danny groaned and got to his feet, scanning the area for Technus. "Look I really don't have time for this, so buzz off or I'll keep you stuffed in the thermos for a week!"

"How dare you threaten _me_!" the ghost shouted. "You shall face the wrath of-" but before he could finish, Danny was already racing off through the green tinted space. "Hey! Get back here! You can't run off when I'm threatening you!"

Danny had finally caught sight of Technus again and was racing at top speed to reach the thief. Behind him, the Box Ghost flew on, unable to keep up, but not letting Danny out of his sight ether. Danny pulled up and glided over Technus. Once he was right on top of him, he nosedived and slammed his fists into the bespecticaled specter. The box Technus had been holding went flying out of his arms. Technus turned and shot an ecto-blast into Danny's face, successfully launching the teen off of him.

"Why must you be so persistent?" Technus shouted, preparing another blast.

"You're stealing stuff from _my own home_!" Danny responded, righting himself just in time to dodge an attack.

"I'm taking only what is no longer wanted. You said yourself, it is only a pile of junk."

"Yeah, and I've seen what you can do with my family's used appliances before. I'm not just going to sit back and let you take a whole box of them." Danny summoned a shield and reflected one of Technus' blasts back at him before sending one of his own. "Even if it is just cluttering up the place…"

Technus deflected the first blast, but the second hit him square in the face, knocking his shades off in the process. Danny reached behind him, deftly unclipped the thermos from his belt and uncapped it. "Now, be a good little burglar and-" A heavy, wooden box dropped onto Danny's shoulders and sent him crashing into an island below.

"Ha ha! That will teach you to underestimate the likes of _me_ , The Box Ghost!"

Danny had hit the ground hard and it took him a few moments to catch his breath. No doubt he'd have bruises before the night was done. He looked up and could see the two ghosts talking, likely making their little team-up official. His gaze turned to the area he'd landed on. That box had to have landed somewhere, right? Then again, it could have just floated off somewhere. Physics had a habit of picking and choosing when to and not to work in the Ghost Zone. His eyes flickered over to a nearby island and stilled. There! The box was about 50 feet away, its contents strewn about the little landmass. If he could just get to it, while they were talking he might have a chance at getting home before sunrise.

Slowly, Danny got to his feet and crept to the edge of his island. 30 feet. He could make it. He hazarded a glance overhead. They were arguing now. Perfect. He carefully floated over the void between the islands and began picking up the odd metal scraps that had been tossed around. He gently lowered a handful of pieces into the upturned box, wincing at the slight clanking noise they made. He turned and was just about to reach for half of what looked like an ecto-gun, when a bolt of energy shocked him from behind.

Danny screamed as electricity jolted through his body. When it finally stopped, he was on the ground again. Not trusting his still shaking legs to hold his weight, he floated up and glared at Technus, who was manipulating the scraps out of the box and beginning to piece them together. Next to him, The Box Ghost grinned, holding the now empty box aloft, as if it was some sort of equally dangerous weapon. Danny turned his focus back to Technus.

"You even know what that's gonna do?" he asked.

"That's what testing is for, child." Technus grinned, grabbing the handle of a now more gun-like device and aiming it at Danny. He fired. Danny dodged and the beam of energy that missed him melted a hole through a crumbling wall. "Ooooo! Effective! Now, let's see what _this_ setting does." Technus pressed a button and the gun glowed purple. He aimed it at Danny once more and fired. Danny moved to dodge, but something was hastily shoved over his head and made him stumble. His hands lit up and ripped the cardboard to shreds, just in time to see a purple beam surge past him, less than an inch from his ear. The beam stopped in mid-air and the purple energy pooled, growing into a large, flat circle until it was about three feet in diameter. Danny's face paled as a familiar force began to pull him towards the new portal.

"The Portal Gun." Danny muttered. "You messed with the portal gun!" Normally he wouldn't be too concerned. In the mortal world, the portals made by the gun would suck ghosts into the ghost zone, which Danny knew how to get out of with relative ease. But in the ghost zone, portals could send anyone anywhere and anywhen. There was no telling what lay on the other side of this portal or how quickly it would close after he went through.

He tried to brace himself, digging his heels into the dirt, but the pull from the portal only grew stronger. Overhead, Technus and The Box Ghost were also having to fight the pull and seemed to no longer be concerned with Danny. Ghostly rocks, dead shrubs and some of the unused scraps were hurled through the portal. Danny tried to fly against the pull, using every ounce of strength and speed he could muster. Over his shoulder he could see the portal already shrinking. He just had to keep this up a little longer. Just a few more seconds.

A stream of metal scraps came flying at Danny's face. The gun Technus had used was now discarded and coming about without his ghostly energy holding it together. Danny frantically tried to wave the pieces out of the way, but the distraction caused him to stop for just a moment. Instantly he was hauled through the portal, unable to right himself in time.

Sunlight blinded him the instant he came out the other side of the portal. He squeezed his eyes shut and felt the familiar sensation of gravity heaving him down towards the ground. He caught himself and opened his eyes slightly. He had to be well over five stories high, judging from the size of the buildings all around. Below him the metal scraps hit the pavement, some bouncing off of cars and making people jump out of the way. Unfamiliar writing, some type of asian text, was plastered on buildings and massive TV screens. On one screen a man with what looked like horns growing from his head, sat at a desk, talking to the camera. Danny shook his head. Some TV show, he thought. Still, where was he?

He looked up. The portal was barely a foot across now, and closing fast.

"No." He bolted, his legs flickering into a ghostly tail as he sped upwards. "Nononononononono!"

He watched in horror as the portal grew smaller and smaller. He reached out. He could almost touch it. Just a little closer. And it was gone. He sped through the space where it had been, but nothing happened. He darted across the space again. Nothing. His ghost sense wasn't going off ether. It was gone. The portal. The Ghost Zone. Just… gone. He was trapped.

"No!"


	2. Chapter 2

The bright sunlight stung at glowing green eyes and wind whipped through tousled white hair. He floated there, 60 feet in the air, staring at nothing with wide, horrified eyes. Shouting from below reached his ears, but he didn't hear them. It had all happened so fast. He hadn't had time to think, much less react. And now…

What was he going to do?

A voice broke through his shock and he turned to look at who'd spoken. Shock twisted into confusion and he instinctively hovered back a few feet. The person in front of him was dressed in a blue suit and wore a wooden helm that hid all but his eyes from view. But what confused Danny wasn't the person's clothing, but his arms. What looked like tree limbs and branches extended from the places where the man's arms should have been, clinging and wrapping around the building Danny was floating next to. The figure seemed human enough otherwise. His ghost sense wasn't going off and nothing about this person seemed spirit-like, but what else could it be? The man spoke again, but Danny couldn't understand him. Was that Korean? Japanese? Chinese?

"Uh… I don't… I don't know what you're saying." he tried. He held up his hands, hoping this person wasn't the fighting type. "Look, I don't want any trouble. Ok?"

The man tilted his head slightly. "American?" he asked, pausing for a moment. He gestured to the ground below and Danny could see the scatter hunks of metal and the crowd that was now growing and looking up at them. The tree man said something else, but Danny hadn't a clue what he was saying.

"I-I can pick that up, if you want. Is that what you want?"

The tree guy said more unknown words and Danny's frustration grew.

"Look, clearly I can't understand you and you can't understand me." he said, gesturing between them, as if hand signals would help get the message across any better. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. How about, you just go mind your own business and I'll get out of your hair, ok?" He began to slowly float away and down towards the ground. He needed to retrieve the portal gun pieces if he wanted any chance of getting back home.

The tree man shouted. Danny kept making his way closer to the ground.

"I'm just gonna get my things and-"

A long branch launched from the man's arm and reached out to grab at Danny. Instinct took over and the teen went intangible, the wooden limb passing right through him. He dashed a few feet away and let himself become tangible again.

"Hey! I said I wasn't-" the instant he spoke the tree limbs came at him again. He dodged to the left, going intangible once more and disappearing from view. Clearly this wasn't going to be a situation he could talk his way out of. Then again, he couldn't think of a time when that method had actually worked. With a sigh, he dove for the ground and began picking up the pieces of portal gun that had been strewn across the pavement and sidewalk. A scream sounded from beside him, likely some lady only just noticing the metal chunks floating seemingly by themselves into a hovering pile. Danny didn't bother to look up. He needed to get his stuff and get out of here, asap.

He grabbed a metal tube that had a faint purple glow to it, but the piece was immediately knocked out of his hand by a tree limb. The impact toppled the teen over and he flickered back into sight. Danny looked up. The tree guy was on the ground now, posed for a fight and shouting what Danny assumed to be orders. So much for avoiding a fight.

"Oh come on!" he shouted back, setting the pieces in his arms onto the ground. "I can't understand you! What's more shouting going to do?" He got to his feet and the crowd around them began to back up. Though, they didn't seem to be in any great hurry. There was a nonchalance in the way they moved. As if they were used to a super powered teenager fighting a tree person in broad daylight. He hazarded a glance at the onlookers and for the second time, he was caught by surprise.

Mixed in amongst the average human were figures that stood out like beacons of abnormality. The first one he noticed was a business woman with a snake for a head. Further back in the crowd he saw a man with some kind of pointed growths protruding from his bald head. Others were subtler. A lady with black, metallic hands. A young boy with what Danny could only describe as having bird legs, clinging to a guy whose eyes were a deep, blood red. All around him these odd people were gathered. Watching. And none of the normal people next to them seemed to mind. Everyone was more interested in he and the tree guy. No… no they were all staring at Danny. As if he was the only weird person here.

"What the hell…" Danny took a step back. Within seconds he was consumed by branches, wrapping tightly around him and holding his arms close to his sides. He winced. He'd let himself get distracted. This was no time to think about who or what was watching. Just fight. Get free and fight. Then run the second he had the chance.

Intangibility swept over him and Danny easily phased through the restraints. This time he didn't hesitate. His hands lit up with green energy and he shot a blast at the tree guy's chest. The blue-clad figure stumbled back, taken by surprise. Danny flew upwards and scanned the crowd. He needed something to put the gun pieces in. Something he could carry and keep his hands free. There! A uniformed kid, about his age with a backpack.

Danny dove for him. The student, a dark haired boy with some kind of growth on his arms, realized he was being targeted and turned to run. Danny was faster. He phased through the kid, grabbed the backpack straps and phased the bag off of his shoulders. The kid shouted in surprised.

"Sorry, but I really really need this." Danny said, hastily unzipping the bag and unceremoniously dumping its contents onto the sidewalk in front of the student. "Thanks, bye!"

Without a second to spare, he sped back to the clearing in the street and began to hastily grab at whatever wrecked gun pieces were closest and stuffed them into the bag. A thick wooden limb came for him, but Danny was ready this time. He focussed and summoned an ecto shield to block the attack, allowing him to keep packing the bag. The impact was audible and made Danny pause, but it had done the job. Just a couple more pieces he could see on the ground and then the one he'd seen fall onto that car.

He reached out to grab the still-mostly-assembled back half of the portal gun. Something flickered in the sunlight, reminding Danny of a spider's thread, and then the gun was flung back from his grasp and into the air. He watched as it landed in the hands of a blonde figure, clad head to toe in blue denim.

"Oh great. And who are you supposed to be, The Lord of Levis?" Danny deadpanned.

"English?" the blonde said. "Not my best, but I try. I am Best Jeanist. You have upset peace, attack hero and, attack civilian. Give up now and come quiet."

No, he thought, not the best English, but he got the gist. Danny let his shoulders relax, but kept his guard up. He wasn't about to just ignore the tree guy who was still poised to the right of him. "Ok. My name's Danny Phantom. I didn't mean any harm. I just need to get my stuff," he gestured to the bag and the half of a gun in Jeanist's hand, "and I will leave."

Best Jeanist shook his head. "I cannot do that. You must be detained. Come quiet."

Danny tensed. He doubted these 'heroes' had any way of keeping ghosts restrained, but he wasn't keen on finding out if they had an ace up their sleeves. "Sorry, but I was taught not to go anywhere with strangers. You and Treebeard here certainly fall into that category, so…" he turned invisible and intangible, "later!" Unseen, he sped forward, grabbed the gun and phased it out of Jeanist's grasp. The man whirled around, surprise lighting up his eyes.

Danny flew upwards, this time concentrating on keeping himself unseen and untouchable above all else. He spotted the last piece on the hood of a nearby car and made a beeline for it. The metal vanished under his touch and he quickly stowed it and the main gun part into the bag. Something glittered in the sunlight in front of him. This time he was able to identify it. Thin threads were glinting in the light, moving of their own accord through the air and encircling the space where the last piece had been. His eyes followed the threads back to the denim guy, who appeared to be manipulating the unwravelled strings from the hems of his sleeves. Like everything else they'd thrown at him though, the threads passed harmlessly through Danny. Still, he didn't want to wait around and see if another freak would show up that actually could take him on. He floated upwards, secured the bag onto his back and shot high into the air.

After flying over a few buildings and weaving through some streets, assuming he'd be harder to track if he avoided moving in a straight line, Danny eventually let his invisibility drop. He needed to conserve his energy in case more of those super people came after him. The Jeanist guy had mentioned detaining him. If he was working for the police… heck, he probably was one of the police. At this rate his face was going to be on wanted posters before nightfall. He needed to get out of town and figure out where the hell he was and how to get that damned gun working again.

He managed to reach a quieter part of town and landed on the roof of a building. There was a structure there that likely housed the building's air conditioning unit. Danny ducked behind it and waited. Nothing happened. Nothing continued to happen for a few minutes while he caught his breath. Even if he hadn't had to really fight anyone, going in and out of visibility on repeat and for an extended period of time was still draining. Not to mention the stress of everything that had led up to this crazy encounter. That fight with Technus and the Box Ghost seemed like it happened forever ago. Only now did he notice that his shoulders still hurt when he breathed too deeply. At least in his ghost form he'd heal a heck of a lot faster.

"Kamui Woods said you speak english."

Danny whirled around and stumbled to his feet. A man with long black hair and a ridiculously long scarf was perched on a telephone pole a few yards away. How had he gotten there.

"Let me guess, you're another 'hero person'?" Danny asked, readying himself to take flight again.

"I'm a Pro-Hero, as are the two men who you attacked back there." He tilted his head slightly. "Do you know what the penalty for that can be?"

"Hey, the tree guy attacked me first." Danny defended. "I couldn't figure out what he was saying and I just decided to get my stuff and go. Clearly, he had issue with that and started getting grabby with the branch thingies."

The man listened and waited for a moment before speaking. "You need to come with me. We'll take you down to the station and you can explain yourself to the police. They'll get this sorted out." He was confident as he spoke, as if he'd done this sort of thing many times before. His accent was still present, but at least he was speaking fluently. Still, the last place Danny needed to be was with the authorities.

Danny took a step back. "Sorry, I appreciate you listening to me and all, but I can't do that."

"I wasn't asking."

Danny hesitated. Then he ran. Invisibility flickered up his arm for a split second. Then a number of things hit him like a freight train all at once. His hand instantly popped back into sight, but not his white, gloved hand. His pale, solid, human skin came into view, along with the sleeves of the pajamas he'd been wearing when his ghost sense had gone off. Something heavy hit him in the chest and he couldn't bring his other leg up to keep moving. His body fell lazily and hit the gravel roof, hard, but he didn't feel the impact. His vision was going dark around the edges, like so many other times when he'd been knocked out. But he hadn't been hit in the head. His insides ached and burned. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't get himself to breath. He couldn't move at all. Even his eyelids refused to blink as he lay there, suffocating. The darkness relentlessly closed in around him and terror and confusion blocked out the voice that was calling out from the other side of the roof.

The air stung as it filled his lungs, but he sucked it in ravenously. His eyes watered and he blinked furiously as sight returned to him. He sat up, wavering from the dizziness. His heart was racing, beating furiously in his aching chest. His right hand clutched at his shirt and only then did he realize he was shaking. The familiar chill of his dormant ghost powers faded in like a cool breeze in the back of his mind. Blue eyes blinked at the tears and the sound of footsteps reached his ears. He looked up.

The dark haired man was running towards him.

Danny's eyes went wide and he tried to shuffle backwards, but his limbs were only half listening to him. "sTaY-" his voice was ragged. He grabbed a handful of gravel and threw it at the approaching man. "Stay ba-k."

The man stopped, but didn't take his eyes off of Danny. He was only a few feet away. Too close. Danny continued to try and scoot backwards. "Stop moving and I won't have to come any closer."

"What the hell did you do to me?" Danny choked out, stopping his retreat for fear that whatever had just happened would happen again.

"I cancelled out your quirk. At least, that's what it was supposed to do." His voice seemed… confused to some extent, though he didn't show any emotion on his face.

"My quirk?" Danny coughed. "What's that supposed to mean? What the hell are you people? Where the hell am I?"

The stern, uninterested facade faltered and the man's brow furrowed. "You're in Musutafu, Japan. Were you unaware of this?"

Danny just nodded.

The man paused, thinking. "Where did you come from?"

"That's… that's kind of a long story." Danny muttered.

"Of course it would be… Come with me down to the station. The police will want to hear what you have to say." He held out a hand to help him off the floor. Danny didn't move. "I can't leave you here, unattended. I'm taking you in, one way or another."

A chill ran up Danny's spine. "You almost killed me with that… whatever it was." He let his statement hang in the air before speaking again. "I couldn't breathe… I couldn't... Do you normally threaten death on your enemies so nonchalantly?"

"That's not how my quirk is supposed to function." he stated plainly. "I'm not sure why your body reacted as it did, but that was not my intention. That said, you _are_ an unknown. A threat. If you step out of line, I will do what I must to bring you down. Am I understood?"

He nodded.

"Good." The man rummaged into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone. "I need to make a call. Don't go anywhere." He walked over to the edge of the roof, keeping Danny in his periphery at all times. Once he started speaking in Japanese, Danny let himself relax, if only slightly.

For a few moments he just sat there, letting himself breathe while he thought over everything that had just happened. His hands were still trembling slightly, so he laid back flat on the roof. Probably for the best, he thought. It didn't seem like a good idea to get up and try to move around a lot after… that. What was _that_ , anyways? Heart attack? Stroke? He winced at the thought. He'd been beaten, electrocuted, overshadowed and lord knows what else, but something about his own body just… stopping like that. _That_ terrified him. After all, he could fight off ghosts and break out of cells all day, but he couldn't battle his own body deciding to-

"The police are on the way." The man said, still typing something into his phone. He looked down at Danny for a moment, then went back to texting. "How do you feel?"

"Not great, but I'll live." Danny chuckled. "Sort of."

"I'll inform the authorities that you need to be looked at."

"Uh… that's ok. I'll manage." Danny said, waving a hand as if this wasn't a big deal.

"If your reaction was as bad as it looked and you're not faking, then you need medical attention." He stated, plainly.

"I'm not a big fan of doctors and…" he hesitated. Talking about his powers always felt odd. He spent so much effort trying to keep their existence secret that speaking plainly about them was almost taboo in his mind. However, if the heroes here and those civilians were any indication, super powered people were hardly unheard of here. "I don't know if that's the best idea."

The man pocketed his phone, giving Danny his full attention. "Regardless, you need to be looked at. For your own safety." Something in the way he spoke sounded… off. As if he wanted to add something to the end there, but decided not to. What was he thinking?

"What's your name?" Danny asked.

"My hero name is Eraserhead, but you can call me Aizawa."

Danny choked back a laugh. "Eraserhead? Really? Did you pick that one out yourself?"

"A friend suggested it and I didn't really care one way or another." he shrugged, ether not seeing the humor in it, or perhaps too used to the joke.

"Ok, so Aizawa is what? A backup name to sound less silly?"

"It's my surname. Aizawa Shouta is my full name."

Danny's brow furrowed. "Aren't you concerned about people knowing your real name? Secret identity and all?"

Aizawa crossed his arms. "The use of secret identities fell out of style for most heroes decades ago. Now only villains and people with something to hide try to keep their identities unknown. So, who are you?"

"Danny. Danny Phantom, when I'm all ghosty and Danny Fenton when I'm…" he brushed a hand through his black hair, "well, this."

"And you're American, clearly. How did you end up here?"

"Honestly, I'm still trying to figure that one out myself."

"You don't know?"

"Well, it's complicated." Danny sighed. "I know where I was and technically how I got here, but everything happened so fast. I didn't exactly plan on taking a trip to Japan at 3 am in my pajamas, much less getting flung through a portal and becoming an international public enemy number one… again."

Aizawa's eyes narrowed. "Kamui Woods had said you appeared out of a black and purple portal in the sky."

"Yeah. It closed before I could get back through…" Danny said. For the first time since he fell, he realized the backpack wasn't with him anymore. He turned his head and saw it a few feet away, still zipped and secure.

"Kid, eyes on me." Aizawa said. "This is important. Does the name Kurogiri mean anything to you?"

Danny looked confusedly back at Aizawa. "No?"

"What about Shigaraki?"

"What? No. Look, I don't know anyone from japan. The closest is a guy at my school, who's name is Kwan, but I'm pretty sure he and his folks were born in the states."

Mild irritation settled on Aizawa's face. "That's a Korean name. Not Japanese."

"Well, that settles it then. I don't know a single person from Japan."

Sirens sounded from down below. The cop cars were closing in on their location. Aizawa glanced over the edge of the building. Danny pushed himself up onto his elbows and a wave of dizziness hit him. He groaned.

"You should wait here. They can bring a stretcher up and-"

"I'll manage." Danny stated.

"There's no point in trying to act tough. You're just going to chance hurting yourself further."

"I'm _not_ going to be strapped down to a board. I don't do well being restrained."

"It's for your own good."

"I said no."

Aizawa glared back at the teen. Danny's eyes didn't waver. After a long moment the older man sighed and closed his eyes. "Fine then." he walked over to the roof's access door and opened it, looking inside. "Make it down this flight of stairs and there should be an elevator that'll take us the rest of the way."

"Got it." Danny said, rolling onto his hands and knees and slowly trying to get to his feet. His head was spinning like crazy and he was having a hard time finding his balance. In one quick motion he managed to get one foot under himself, but he had to catch himself with an arm to keep from toppling over. He stayed like that for a breath, then forced himself up so that he could properly stand on two legs. He stay upright for all of three seconds before the vertigo pulled him back towards the ground.

Before his face planted into the loose gravel though, an arm caught him around the middle and stopped his fall. He blinked.

"I don't have time for this, kid." Aizawa said, before scooping the teen up completely. Danny wanted to protest, but his head was pounding and the effort it had taken to get this far had already exhausted him. He could feel himself getting ready to pass out again. He murmured something, but he'd already forgotten what he'd said by the time his eyes shut.


	3. Chapter 3

An annoying beeping sound was all he could make out at first. It was faint, but the more he focussed on it, the louder it grew. It brought with it voices, talking in hushed tones, far away. The beeping quickened, though only slightly. Nothing that would have been noticed unless that was all you were focusing on. As he lay there, the rhythmic sound grew almost hypnotic and the idea of going back to sleep for a bit sounded more and more agreeable.

One deep breath and a sharp pain chased those thoughts away and Danny was thrust into the waking world. He groaned and the voices faltered. All the memories of the ghost fight, then the portal and the rooftop standoff, flooded back to his mind. Bleary eyes blinked open. It felt like he'd been sleeping for weeks. He moved to rub at his eyes, but a sharp tugging on his left arm caused him to stop. A thin tube, taped to the crook of his elbow, trailed down the edge of the hospital bed and up to a clear plastic bag. That was a new one. Normally if he got hurt he had to walk it off or make do with home remedies. Being hospitalized, at a real hospital anyways, was something he'd yet to experience. In all honesty it was something of a relief. Being cared for by professionals came with a certain ease whereas having serious injuries tended to by friends or family simply did not.

"Fenton?" a voice sounded off to his right. He turned his head and a dark haired figure came into view. It took a moment of thought to remember the man's name.

"Aizawa, right?" he said, his voice still carrying a sleepiness to it.

"Yes. Glad you're finally awake." Aizawa said, handing Danny a cup of water.

"How long was I out for?"

"36 hours, give or take a few." Another man, standing next to Aizawa and wearing a white coat said something to him in Japanese. Aizawa nodded and turned back to Danny. "The doctors are surprised you're doing as well as you are. I'm guessing you have some sort of healing ability on top of everything else?"

Danny shrugged. "Sort of. I'd heal faster if I was in my other form."

"How do you feel?"

"Sore." He stretched and winced as the familiar but dull pain in his chest returned. "I've had worse though. It'll pass in a day or two."

Aizawa said something to the doctor, who nodded and made his way to the door. "The police have been waiting to talk with you. Do you think you can manage to answer some of their questions?"

"Uh, yeah. Yeah I can do that." Danny glanced around the room, taking in his surroundings. It was exceptionally bare, with only a pair of chairs against one wall and no windows for him to tell if it was night or day. "Uh… where's my bag?"

"The backpack containing the assumed weapon parts has been turned over to the authorities." Aizawa explained.

"No, I need that. It's-"

"Making demands isn't going to get you very far, Fenton. I suggest you cooperate and maybe you'll have your property returned to you."

Danny slumped against the pillows and sighed. "Fine. Could you call me Danny, though? The only people who call me 'Fenton' are my teachers and some jerks from my school."

"If that's what you'd prefer, then fine. Danny it is."

The door opened and a man in an officer's uniform walked in, followed by a woman who had green, cat-like eyes and pointed ears that were at least six inches long. The man said something to Aizawa, who replied in kind, before turning back to the teen.

"Danny, this is detective Tsukauchi and his interpreter, Ms. Oshima." Aizawa introduced. "The detective has a few questions for you. I trust you'll be cooperative and as helpful as possible. Just so you know, the detective's quirk allows him to know if anyone is lying to him, regardless of what language they speak. I suggest you stick to telling the truth, out of respect, if nothing else." Aizawa turned and started making his way towards the door.

Danny nodded. "Right. Um… are you leaving?"

Aizawa turned and glared at danny from over his shoulder. "Do I need to sit here and watch your every move, or are you going to stay there and cooperate?" His eyes were red around the edges and there was an agitation in his voice Danny hadn't noticed before.

"No- er… yeah I'll stay here. I just-" Just what? It wasn't like he'd known the guy for more than a few minutes. Considering what his ability had done to him, Danny should be glad that the guy was giving him some space. And yet, so far he was the only person in this world that he'd had the chance to talk to. Not to mention, he'd actually listened to Danny. And he hadn't had to. He didn't have to tell Danny who he was or answer any of his questions, but he did. He was at least more familiar than anyone else in this place so far. In all honesty, being stuck in a world alien to his own and with no connections to home, quite simply, he didn't want to be alone with a menagerie of strangers poking and prodding and asking questions all day.

Aizawa watched the hesitation and worry flicker across the kid's features and he let his shoulders sag. "I'll most likely be back before they're done. Seeing as I'm the only thing so far that can keep you under control, you're not getting rid of me anytime soon." He continued out the door and Danny laid back against the pillows once more.

The detective spoke up then and once he had finished speaking, the interpreter, Oshima, chimed in. "Hello, Danny. We need you to answer a few questions for us, if you don't mind. The detective will ask the questions and I will translate. If you'd like to ask some questions of your own, please let me know. I will warn you though that the detective cannot guarantee that he will answer any question you have. Now then, your full name is Danny Fenton, correct?" Danny nodded. "And you're American, yes? What is your reason for coming to Japan?"

"I didn't exactly plan on coming here. It was an accident."

Oshima raised a brow at him. "You accidentally crossed the pacific without meaning to?"

"More or less." Danny chuckled, humorlessly.

"I see." She interpreted for the detective and gathered more questions to ask. "Danny, witnesses said you fell out of the sky through a purple and black void. Is this correct?"

"Yeah. It was a portal. It sort of sucked me in, hence the accident bit."

Oshima translated and Danny saw the confusion settle onto the detective's face.

"Where were you when you were pulled through the portal?" Oshima asked. "Where there other people with you?"

"I don't know if _you'd_ call them people, exactly." Danny hesitated. This was the part that was always hard to convince people of. "This is gonna sound completely out of left field, but do you guys believe in ghosts?"

Oshima looked taken aback by the question. Danny waited quietly. Oshima translated and the detective's brow furrowed. "I do not see how this question is relevant, Danny. Personally I do believe in an afterlife and the spirits of those who've died, but it's not something I think about on a daily basis."

"Well, to put it bluntly, ghosts _are_ real and the place where spirits manifest into ghosts isn't as hard to reach as you may think."

"Are you insinuating that you think you know how to reach the afterlife?" Oshima asked.

"Not quite." Danny said, scratching at the back of his neck. "See, ghosts are dead people, spirits, who haven't been able to cross over or move on. But ghosts don't just 'happen', otherwise you'd see them everywhere. They have to manifest in a place where they can absorb energy. My parents are scientists who've spent their entire live researching ghosts and the realm that they come from. That's the only reason I know as much about this as I do. Kind of hard to escape the lingo when the folks work from home, all day, every day."

Oshima took a bit longer to translate and the detective seemed slightly annoyed as he responded.

"This is an interesting theory, but how does any of this connect with the incident you were involved in yesterday?"

"The portal that I came through, on the other side was the same ghost dimension I've been talking about. Before I got here, I was in there. My parents don't just research theories, they actively test them on real ghosts from the Ghost Zone."

"Ghost Zone?" she asked skeptically.

Danny shrugged. "They were the first ones to open a doorway into the dimension and prove that it existed, so they got to coin the term. Dad's not the most scientific or artful when it comes to names."

"So you were in this Ghost Zone, and then you went through a portal and ended up here?"

"That's the basics of it, yeah."

Oshima sighed. "Danny, I don't mean to be rude, but this all sounds quite fantastical."

"I'm not making it up." Danny retorted.

"I didn't say you were lying."

"I'm not crazy ether."

"I didn't say that you were." Oshima ensured, her voice remaining calm and collected at all times. "If what your telling us is accurate, then it is a lot to take in and understand. For now, let's move on. You said you were not alone when the portal opened, correct?"

"Yeah. I was fighting off a couple of ghosts, who stole some old and broken equipment from the lab downstairs. They woke me up, hence the pjs and bare feet." he said, gesturing to his still intact night clothes.

"And you decided to attack these ghosts yourself?"

"Yeah." Danny shrugged.

"Why didn't you alert your parents? They sound like they're experts on the subject, could they not reclaim their own stolen goods?"

"Well…" He had to hold back a laugh. "That gets a little more complicated. Their theory is basically that ghosts are monsters who haunt and cause trouble and have zero redeeming qualities. They don't just research ghosts, they hunt them. And they tend to go a bit overboard… a lot."

"And you disagree with their ideas on these ghosts?" Oshima asked.

"Depends on the ghost. There's a lot that are dangerous, angry and just looking for something to take all that out on, but there's others who are just trying to make sense of their existence."

"So you take it upon yourself to be a neutral voice in the matter?"

"I don't know if neutral's the right word, but I know how to catch them and dump them back into the Ghost Zone without causing as much harm or property damage. Usually…"

"You're just a child though. Even if this kind of ghostly activity is real, then it would fall under hero work. You can't be allowed to use your quirk as you see fit. Every country has laws against such actions."

"Ok, what are quirks?" Danny asked, mild agitation seeping into his voice, though he remained oddly relaxed. "You guys keep using that word and I've never heard it used like that before."

Oshima stared at him. "You don't know what quirks are?"

"No. I mean I know people with quirky personalities, but I'm pretty sure that's not what you're talking about."

She translated and the Detective looked between her and Danny. Then he said something and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Quirks are the term for super powers that most people possess. For example my quirk is Calming Aura. I can influence a person's emotions to make them less likely to act on their emotions." She explained. Suddenly his lack of reaction made a bit more sense to him, despite his less than cheery mood. "Most people have a single quirk or a combination of their parent's quirks, but from what we've gathered, you have quite a few."

"Oh… well, yeah. I can phase through solid objects, turn invisible, create energy beams or ecto balls, make ecto shields, fly. I guess if each one was expected to be its own thing that would add up to a lot. Heh, figures. Even when I go to a place with superheroes around every corner I'm still a freak." He paused, giving his head time to wrap itself around all the information he was taking in. "And, when you say 'most people' have quirks, how many are we talking about?"

"Roughly 80% of the world's population is born with a quirk or manifests one in early childhood." She stated plainly.

Danny's eyes went wide. The strange looking people in the crowd popped to the front of his thoughts. "That… that explains a lot actually." He sighed. "This is nuts. So the whole world is like this? Super powered people, all over the place?"

"Yes. It's surprising that you're unaware of this."

"Not really. Actually, this is all starting to make more and more sense." he said. "The portals that open from inside the Ghost Zone don't seem to abide by any rules or logic. They're impossible to predict or track and they can sometimes open up in different time periods. One minute you're in a plane flying through a storm, the next thing you know you've glided into a portal to the Ghost Zone and get spat back out in ancient Rome. And that's not theory. I've had my fair share of jaunts through portals like that before."

"So you know how to open more of these portals then?"

"Well, no. Back then I had, well… a map that could lead me to the portals and take me home. This time I didn't."

"Then are you trying to say that you think you've come to a different time period?"

"Maybe? But, it'd have to be the future to me and the buildings and tech looks pretty much the same as the stuff back home, so I don't think I've time traveled. I think this is closer to another dimension, like how the Ghost Zone is technically another dimension to our own. Well… my own."

"So you think you're from another dimension?"

"Maybe. Look, I don't know any of this for sure. My parents are the scientists, not me. I'm just trying to come up with an answer that makes sense of any of this."

"I understand. However this is a lot to take on just your word alone. I hope you understand, we aren't trying to say that you're wrong, rather that we are trying to contextualize the information you're providing with what we already know." Oshima spoke with the Detective, who seemed to be thinking a lot between words. Once he was done, Oshima turned back to Danny. "If nothing else we'll take this into consideration. Thankfully your disturbance yesterday resulted in no injuries. The only damage was a small dent on the hood of a taxi. Easy enough to patch up and the owner is not going to press charges. However, seeing as there is no record of you in any national database and no one has come forward claiming to be your next of kin, we cannot allow you, as an underage person, to be left unattended. We're willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, as to your criminal background or lack thereof, but your unregistered quirk and its unusual condition cannot be ignored. Until we know for sure that you are not a danger, we cannot let you roam the streets and do as you please. You'll be assigned a caretaker, who can ensure your safety and the safety of the populous, should you become a threat. Do you understand?"

Danny nodded. "You've clearly done your research while I was out cold. And now you're putting me under house arrest, basically."

"Only for a short time. Until we can come to better understand your quirk and find a way to contain it without causing you any harm in the process."

Danny laughed. "That's a new one. Usually when people want to figure out what makes me tick, my wellbeing is the last thing on their minds."

Oshima gave him a concerned look. "What do you mean?"

Realizing what he'd said, Danny raised a hand as if to wave her worries away. "Nothing. Nothing. It's not important, really."

"Danny, we're not your enemies here." Oshima assured him. "We're not going to hurt you, if we can help it. Our first priority is to help people and that includes you."

Danny shook his head. "Seriously, don't worry about it. I shouldn't have said what I said."

Oshima didn't seem convinced. "Well, the doctor would like to keep you under observation for a few more hours, just to be safe. Normally you'd be kept longer but apparently you're healing at an increased rate."

Danny shrugged. "Just another part of me being me."

Oshima offered him a smile. "Well, so that you are aware, the nurses have run a few basic tests while you were sleeping, just to get a better idea of how your body functions. Nothing more invasive than a simple blood test I assure you. The doctor did want to run some more tests, but he would need patient consent. You are free to decline if you so desire, but if you're hurt again the lack of information could be vital."

"I'll think about it." Danny mumbled. "I'm not really used to telling people about my powers or what I am."

"And what exactly _are_ you, Danny?"

"Somewhere between long dead and still breathing." he gave a stilted laugh.

"Well, you look like a regular teenager to me." Oshima said. "A teen who's had a very long and stressful two days. Dead or alive, this can't be easy for you."

A rare flicker of melancholy clouded Danny's eyes as he watched the woman talk to the detective. There was something in the way that she spoke. A genuineness that kept him from retorting with his usual quips. When was the last time someone had said something like that to him? And meant it? A chill ran down his arms and all at once he felt exposed. Like a raw nerve that'd just had the bandage peeled off it. He wanted to take it back. To unsay what he'd said and just give another non-answer. But the Detective and Ms. Oshima were already getting up to leave.

"It was a pleasure to meet you Danny. I'm sure we'll see you again soon." Oshima said. "For now though, you'll be left in the care of Mr. Aizawa Shouta. If you have any concerns or needs, please call this number." She handed him a clean strip of paper with normal, familiar numbers on it, though not in the order he expected. Still, it was at least something he could read.

When Danny looked up the detective was looking at him and then said something. Oshima nodded. "Right, we will be sure to return your property to you once we have confirmed it is not a danger to the populous."

"And if you find that it is, maybe, a teensy bit dangerous?" Danny asked.

Oshima translated. The detective gave a short reply. "We'll let you know as soon as we know something."

"Thanks." Danny watched as they opened the door and stepped out of the room. He could see Aizawa, leaning against the doorframe, listening to the Detective. No doubt being told that Danny was insane and relaying whatever parts of his story that they found important. Aizawa didn't seem too thrilled by what they had to say, then again he didn't really seem like the type to be thrilled by much.

Soon enough the Detective and Ms. Oshima left and Aizawa stepped in, closing the door behind him. He didn't say anything at first, just stared at Danny, as if he was trying to figure him out. Danny fidgetted under his gaze.

"Looks like you'll be staying at my place, until they can find somewhere more suitable for you."

"More suitable?" Thoughts of a ghost-proof cell flickered through Danny's mind.

"This wasn't exactly a job that I was eager to take on, that said my skills are needed and I'm willing to comply." He shrugged. "Besides, I deal with powerful adolescents at my job every day. What's one more to manage at home?"

Danny tilted his head. "I thought you said you were a pro-hero?"

He nodded, taking a seat in the chair next to the bed. "That's one of my titles, but my current paying job is that of a teacher at a prestigious high school, known for its hero training program. One of the best in the nation."

"Wait, there's a school that teaches you how to be a hero?" Danny asked, incredulous.

"There are quite a few actually." Aizawa responded, slouching into the chair, not seeming to care that he looked like a wet rag on a clothesline. "Being a hero in this society is as much a job as being a doctor or lawyer. There are plenty of people with useful quirks who think they can use their abilities to break the law and do whatever they please. Having equally powerful people who are employed to stop these sorts of crimes is vital."

"I guess that makes sense. And there's not like, anti-quirk communities or weapons that can take away a person's powers?"

Aizawa shrugged. "There was some push back decades ago when the first quirks started to appear, but once quirks became the majority it was harder for the opposition to make much of a fuss. As for the other, there aren't weapons so much as quirk suppressing restraints used by the police and, of course, the rare quirk like mine that can temporarily neutralize a person's powers. But no, there's no way we know of to remove a quirk entirely."

"Huh. That's a plus at least." He said, absently fiddling with one of the monitor wires.

Aizawa watched him for a moment. "You told the detective that you're from another dimension." Danny nodded, not making an effort to look up. "Are there a lot of communities that don't approve of abilities like yours in your world?"

Danny's tinkering stilled. "Sort of. It's less that they don't approve of my powers and more that they're scared of what I am." He shrugged. "Can't really blame 'em honestly. Just about everyone's scared of ghosts."

"You call yourself a ghost?"

"If the shoe fits."

"I can understand referring to your powers as ghost like, moving through objects, flying and being invisible, it's a better gimmick than a lot that I've seen, but you're just as much a living person as anyone else."

"That depends on who you ask." Danny grumbled.

Before anything else could be said on the matter, the doctor from before stepped in along with one of the nurses. The doctor nodded to Danny, then turned his attention to Aizawa. Danny figured he was going to have to get used to the feeling of being ignored for a while. He thought about learning some Japanese while he was here, but it didn't seem that important. After all, he wouldn't be here long. He was going to get the portal gun back one way or another and get himself back home soon. He just had to figure out how to get past Aizawa.


	4. Chapter 4

Four hours. Four long, tedious, annoying and tiring hours of basic tests run by the hospital. Just like Oshima had said, it was nothing too invasive. It was leagues better than being strapped to a metal table and being dissected or forcibly having samples taken from his body between morphs. In fact, when he protested about having more blood drawn they listened. They got their vials of blood in the end, but only after explaining why they needed them. Even so, just the fact that they _heard_ Danny say 'no' and _stopped_ was so alien to him.

Most of the tests were things like x-rays, sensory tests, recordings of his vitals and one thing where they had him run on a treadmill while wires were hooked up to him. All tests, of course, had to be done twice. Once in his living, human form and then again in his ghost form. He was as surprised as everyone else when the x-ray of his ghost form came back as an overexposed, white blob on the screen. Seeing that they were being respectful of his space and comfort level he willingly opened up a bit more and explained to them what he knew of how his body functioned. However, he quickly realized he didn't actually know that much about his ghost form, at least not in a scientific way. Like how, he knew he didn't have a heartbeat or need to breathe or eat in his ghost form, but he'd never really thought about why that was. At least not beyond the 'I'm dead' answer. The doctor theorized that in his ghost form he had no organs at all and was almost entirely made up of ectoplasm and his own unique brand of energy. They'd seen something similar in an electricity based quirk before. With a little effort and toning back the radiation on the x-ray, they were eventually able to get a vague look at his ghostly skeleton. Or at least, the structure that kept him more or less humanoid in his ghost form. Ectoplasm seemed to become semi-solid in places where bones should have been, but with little more than a thought from Danny, could easily become gaseous along with the rest of whatever body part he didn't want to deal with at the time.

A lot of the information they learned there was interesting, but for the most part Danny was just tired. After the revelations about his skeletal structure he began to lose focus and wasn't really paying attention. Thankfully, after the treadmill sprint, Aizawa stepped up and said that he needed to get Danny packed up before it got too late. Not that Danny had a lot to pack up, but he was grateful that the poking and prodding was over. When he finally got back to his secure, windowless room though, he was surprised to find a shopping bag on the bed. He looked over his shoulder at Aizawa, who merely shrugged.

"Figured you'd want something besides night clothes to go walking around in while you're here." he said.

"Yeah, actually." Danny grinned. "Thanks."

"Come on out when you're done." Aizawa said, before stepping out of the room and shutting the door behind him.

Danny opened the bag and found a plain, red t-shirt, a pair of black skinny jeans and some white shoes that looked like they'd been worn a few times before. Not an ideal wardrobe, to say the least, but it was better than running around barefoot. If nothing else, the clothes seemed to fit pretty well. The shirt was a bit loose, but that didn't bother him as much. The best part was that the pants weren't too tight. Once he was dressed, he stuffed his pajamas into the shopping bag, ran a hand through his hair and stepped into the hall.

"Fits well?" Aizawa asked.

"Yeah actually. Seriously, thanks. You didn't have to do that for me."

"Don't worry about it, kid. Come on, it's late and I still have to take care of a few things." He turned and started walking down the hall with Danny following close behind. They wove through halls and corridors until they came to a large elevator. A ding sounded and the doors slid open. It was only when they stepped in that Danny realized how far down they were. Not that ten floors underground would be much for him to get through, but then again, this kind of security wasn't made to keep _him_ in.

"Where is this place?" he asked, his voice quieter than usual as they rose up towards the surface.

"It's a just a hospital." Aizawa said with a shrug. Danny waited for him to continue. He sighed. "Because it's the closest one to the police station, the bottom levels were dug out and added to be a secure site to tend to sick or injured criminals. Down here, the security levels match that of some of the top rated high security prisons. Not just anyone gets to walk out of here without restraints or a swarm of armed guards." Aizawa glanced over his shoulder at the boy.

Danny paled. "That's… interesting?"

Aizawa turned his attention back to the elevator doors. "You were brought here because we knew nothing about you and perceived you as a potential threat. Though you seem relatively harmless for now, I want you to know that you _are_ under observation. You're not off the hook yet and if you step one toe out of line, getting back to your home will be the least of your worries." The elevator dinged and opened onto the ground floor. "I suggest you behave and do as you're told." he said, stepping out into the hall.

Danny followed. The halls here were wider and more colorful, sporting framed artwork on the walls and considerably more people everywhere. They came to a lobby area and stopped at a desk. Aizawa gestured for Danny to wait and began talking to one of the staff.

"Shit." Aizawa sighed. "Ok then. Guess we're leaving from the back." He nodded to the woman behind the counter, who got up and disappeared into a back room.

"What's going on?" Danny asked.

"The press have been waiting out front since yesterday. Apparently, word of your fight with Kamui and Jeanist has been getting around and the media vultures are eager to get photos. Thankfully, your hair color should throw them off long enough for us to get past the crowd." The woman re-appeared from another door and waved them along. "We're going out a staff exit to try and avoid the majority of them. Keep up."

"Sorry for the trouble." Danny said, walking briskly behind the two adults.

"Not your fault that the media can't keep their overgrown noses out of our business." Aizawa said.

The woman led them through the halls, into a section of the hospital that had code-locked doors. The smell of antiseptic chemicals was strong in this part of the hospital. Eventually they made it through a final door that led to the outside. They emerged into a dark parking garage, lit by the occasional, flickering light overhead. Aizawa shook the woman's hand and thanked her, then brusquely wove his way through the parked cars and onto the sidewalk. Danny was struggling to keep up, but made sure not to fall behind. No paparazzi so far. They walked in silence for a few blocks before Aizawa finally slowed.

"We should be fine from here." He said, looking over his shoulder and noticing Danny breathing heavy. "You alright?"

"It's just been a long day." he huffed. "I'll be fine."

"Good. The apartment's not far." Aizawa said.

"I take it you're not the biggest fan of the media, huh?" Danny asked.

"I'm not fond of how they exploit the lives and goings on of heroes, just to selfishly further their own careers. Reporting on incidents and keeping the masses informed of important information is one thing, but dogging heroes for trivial matters and invading their personal lives is something I try to avoid."

"I can appreciate that." Danny said, looking around at the buildings as they passed. This part of town seemed much less busy and bustling than the part of the city he'd first appeared in. The evening hour likely kept most people indoors as well, he thought. It was nice though, walking through the neighborhood and breathing the fresh air. The scent of freshly cut grass was quickly overshadowing the peroxide smell, much to his relief.

The eventually came to a three story complex on the corner of the block. It wasn't fancy or high class by any means, but it wasn't trashy or run-down ether. Just a plain, cream colored building with warm, welcoming lights above every door. There was a considerable lack of trash and litter on the ground and even in the dark of night all the plant life in the little courtyard looked green and full. Aizawa led Danny up a flight of stairs and into one of the last apartments on the floor. Danny stepped inside, Aizawa locking the door behind them.

"Only one bedroom, but the couch is a fold-out." Aizawa explained, pointing out the rooms as he walked further into the space. "Bathroom's around the corner there. Kitchen's over here. You're welcome to anything you find in the pantry. Fair warning though, I haven't been to the store in a while, so there's not much to find." He ambled into the kitchen and pulled a couple of cans out of the pantry. He continued to speak as he scooped some kind of pinkish mush out of the cans and onto a plate, meticulously separating it into tiny piles. The odor of fish wafted through the air. Danny silently prayed that he wasn't going to be expected to eat that. "I'll show you how to use the laundry machines tomorrow and then we'll go get you some more clothes, so you don't have to wear the same thing every day. For now though, let's just get your bed setup and we'll figure out the rest in the morning."

He tossed the empty cans into a garbage bin under the sink and trudged towards a wall with a large curtain covering it. Behind the curtain was a sliding glass door that led out to a tiny patio. On the patio, to Danny's surprise, was no less than ten cats, who all perked up and began mewing the instant Aizawa opened the door. "You're not allergic are you?" He asked over his shoulder as he set the plate of food on the patio floor. Within seconds all the cats were swarmed around the plate, taking their designated places and eating peacefully next to one another.

"Uh… no. Not allergic." He sneered. "Just not a fan of cats, if I'm being honest."

Aizawa glared up at Danny out of the corner of his eye, still petting one of the cats and looking a bit like a very bedraggled James Bond villain. "People who say they don't like cats rarely have good reasons. Usually they have either never interacted with one properly, or they likely have animosity for something associated with cats." she shrugged. "Or a phobia, though I doubt that's the issue in your case."

Danny shrugged. "Bad association then." He didn't bother elaborating.

Aizawa hummed in response. "None of the cats are allowed indoors anyways. The apartment doesn't allow pets."

"Wait… so you just leave them out on your balcony all day?"

"They come and go as they please."

Danny blinked. "We're on the second floor though. How do they-" Before he could finish, an excited, repeating mew came from a nearby tree. Danny watched as a young and thin-looking orange cat came running across one of the branches, stumbling in its excitement, and hopped effortlessly onto the edge of the balcony. Aizawa stood and greeted the kitten with a scratch behind the ears before pulling a tiny handful of dry cratfood out of his pocket. The orange tabby immediately began eating from his hand as if it hadn't seen food in days. Danny watched as the slightest of smiles graced the older man's face.

"Alright then, Cat Whisperer." Danny quipped, turning on his heel and making his way to the couch in the living area. "Everyone needs a hobby I guess."

The living room was mostly bare, say for the old pull-out couch, a side table on either side and a tv on the opposite wall. The kitchen was separated by a raised countertop behind the sink and a few tall barstools. Not very spacious or welcoming, but from the looks of it, Aizawa wasn't the type to be home much or have guests over very often, if ever. It was a far cry from Danny's home back in Amity. Even if they had a ghost lab in the basement, mom at least knew how to decorate and make the rest of the house look nice and normal.

A wave of longing washed over him and he realized he hadn't thought much about his family since he'd gotten here. He'd already been here for two days now. If he was lucky, Sam and Tucker were trying to cover for him, but that wouldn't last another day. Jazz was probably freaking out, like she always did. It wouldn't take long before his parents would realize something was wrong. How long would it take for Jazz and his friends to spill the beans? And what then? Would they all go searching the Ghost Zone for him? Would they stop looking? Would they even care?

He shook his head. No, of course they'd care. They were his family. He'd seen a reality where his parents found out his secret and they still supported and cared about him. They accepted him then, so why wouldn't they if they found out now? A spec of doubt writhed in the corner of his mind, reminding him of all the times they'd threatened him in his ghost form and bragged about the dissections and tortures and devices they were working on in the lab. They had no love for ghosts, only a desire to find out more about them. At their core they were scientists, hungry to see how this little part of the world worked, not caring if they broke or ruined it in the process. Would they really change their thought process, their way of life, for a kid who wasn't entirely alive anymore? A shudder ran up his spine.

None of this would have to matter if he was able to get back soon. He needed to focus on leaving this place, not getting lost in 'what if's. Aizawa had said they'd be going out to get him some more clothes tomorrow. Maybe he could convince the man to take him by the police station. He wouldn't need to set up a heist or act right then, but knowing where it was would be vital.

A yawn rose up in his throat and he set his mostly empty bag down by the couch. He could figure out the rest of the plan tomorrow. For now, he was exhausted. His muscles were still throbbing and he could feel his thoughts gently pulling him towards sleep.

"I'll show you how to make up the bed." Aizawa said, coming in from the patio and closing the door behind him. "But first, I have a few ground rules that you will need to follow while you're staying here. Number one; You do not leave this apartment without my permission. You're under house arrest, for now."

"Yeah I kinda figured that." Danny said.

"Number two; Avoid making contact with neighbors and other civilians. Even if the news only got shots of your white haired form, bringing attention to yourself will only increase the likelihood of you getting recognised and starting a fuss."

"No leaving the building and no talking to anyone. Got it."

"There's one more thing. Less of a rule and more of a request." Aizawa said. "I'm keeping you here, because the alternative would be a prison cell. Judging by how my abilities affected you, police chose not to try and cuff you with quirk suppressing restraints when you were in the hospital. Such precautions would be unavoidable if you were kept in police custody. From where I stand, you're a confused kid who's out of your element. That shouldn't be a reason for treating you like a criminal. However, I am taking a considerable risk by keeping you in my home. If something happens or you decide to do something stupid, the blame falls on my head as well. I do not give opportunities like this lightly and I am even less likely to give second chances. I have to trust that you'll do as I say. So, do me a favor, and don't give me reason to rescind that trust."

A heavy weight pulled at Danny's stomach, though he made an effort not to let it show. "Ok. I'll keep that in mind, then." He said, scratching the back of his head. "And, thanks."

Aizawa shrugged. "Don't mention it. Now come over here and give me a hand."

A grand total of thirty minutes later and the bed had been made, lights were out and Danny was snoring lightly in the nearly silent apartment. Aizawa watched from his bedroom door, making sure the kid was deep asleep before retiring to his own bed. He knew when he accepted this task that he wasn't likely to get much sleep, but at least the kid wasn't spending the night in jail. He set his alarm for 7:00 am, curled up under a mountain of blankets and settled into a light sleep.

The sound of glass shattering on the tile floor in the kitchen, wrenched Aizawa from his dreamless slumber. Light was flooding in through the curtains and next to the bed on the nightstand his alarm read 6:50. He cursed at the few, precious minutes of lost sleep, shuffled out of his bed and peered around the corner of his doorway. Danny was already up and dressed and hastily attempting to clean up whatever it was he had dropped.

" _The broom is in the closet by the door."_ he said.

Danny jumped and looked up at Aizawa. He stood there, like a deer in the headlights for a moment before speaking, in english.

"Uh… sorry I didn't catch that." he said.

It took a moment, in his half-awake state for Aizawa's brain to translate and he realized he'd initially spoken in his native tongue. He sighed and rubbed at his eyes. This was going to be annoying.

"Broom. Closet by the door." he said, pointing this time. Danny nodded and went to clean up the mess, while Aizawa went back to his room to get dressed. When he reemerged and made his way into the kitchen he found Danny staring into the pantry, hand on his chin, likely trying to make sense of the few cans labeled with japanese kanji.

"Don't bother, kid. Nothing much to eat in there, trust me." he said.

"Oh…" Danny said, closing the door to the pantry.

"What were you trying to make earlier?"

"I wasn't- I just took out the jar of bean-looking things to look at what was behind them and it sort of… slipped." He hesitated on the last word, as if trying to hide something. Aizawa looked down, noticing a few of the 'beans' Danny had missed.

"Well, first off," he said, picking one up off the ground, "these are lentils, not beans. Try to be more careful next time, okay?"

Danny nodded, a hand going to the back of his head. A nervous tell, Aizawa had noticed. "Yeah. Sorry."

"Well, no time like the present. Let's head out. We can grab breakfast at a cafe nearby." he said, making his way to the front door.

Danny followed. "So, what do you guys usually have for breakfast around here?"

Aizawa shrugged. "Rice. Salmon. Soup. Basic stuff, but it's filling. You'll see." He locked the door after Danny stepped out, then looked over his shoulder at the teen. "You're not a picky one are you?"

"So long as it doesn't have mushrooms and isn't still alive, I'll try just about anything once." he said with a shrug.

Aizawa grumbled, shoved his hands into his pockets and started trudging towards the stairs. The sun was already casting morning shadows across the city and the sound of morning commuters could be heard from two blocks away. Even though spring was ending, the weather remained blissfully temperate. He knew it wouldn't last though. Give it a week, maybe two and the summer heat would start to show its face soon enough. And then the camp would be starting as well.

Now that his class' finals were complete, the students were eager to take a break. However, recent events meant that such a luxury was implausible. Aizawa had been making calls and planning the camping trip for a few days now. The Pussy Cats had already confirmed and were saving space for them and 1-B's teacher, Vlad King was determined to get his students up to 1-A's standard and join them at the camp. Aizawa doubted they would rise to the challenge, but he wasn't their teacher and he didn't know how determined the students of 1-B would be.

Of course all of this had ground to a halt when a portal resembling those used by the League of Villains had been seen downtown and a teenager came tumbling through it. He'd been on his way to the school when he saw the kid fly off after clashing with Kamui and Jeanist. If he'd known then the mess that this would turn into, he would have kept walking. But, now he was involved and he had to babysit this kid until the authorities could figure out what to do with him. No telling how long that would take.

The sound of quiet footsteps patted along steadily behind him. At least the kid wasn't wandering off or trying to run away. Then again, if his story was true, he would have no place to go. The absurdity of this teen's story was only outshined by the number of abilities he had exhibited and the ease with which he had escaped two capable pro-heroes. And yet, here he was, following along like a lost puppy and looking like any other, normal teen. A normal teen who was currently staring at individuals who had rather obvious mutations and making no effort to hide his shock.

"Stop staring." Aizawa hissed. "You're being blatantly rude."

Danny seemed to shrink back a bit, gluing his eyes to the sidewalk as they continued on their way. "Sorry." he mumbled.

"No need to apologize to me. Just be more conscious of what you're doing, got it?" They rounded a corner and a little cafe came into view. "We're here."

Aizawa walked in and took his usual seat at a booth by the window. The room was small, hosting only five tables and about as many seats at the bar-top counter. Only a couple other customers were there, quietly conversing or eating their meals in silence. As Danny sat across from him a voice rang out from behind the main counter. Aizawa looked up and caught sight of a bouncing wad of curly, gray hair coming out from behind the counter.

" _You're an hour early, Aizawa._ " Said a little old lady, whos squinting eyes were magnified by a pair of thick glasses. " _And you brought a friend? And it's not that blonde one, for once."_ She looked Danny up and down then looked back to Aizawa. " _Your usual?_ "

" _Two, please, Tanaka._ " Aizawa said, holding up two fingers.

" _I assumed as much, dearie._ " she said with a dismissive wave as she turned and walked back into the kitchen. " _You're lucky I always save you a couple slices of salmon. That blue haired one up the street came in here earlier and just about cleaned me out. He had some sort of party, though he didn't say who it was for, I think it's-_ "

Aizawa stopped listening, having grown used to the old lady's ramblings years ago. He turned his attention back to Danny, who had been quietly watching from his side of the booth.

"Should she really be working the kitchen?" he asked. "She looks like she might keel over any minute."

"Miss Tanaka has been running this place for well over fifty years. If she knew what you just said, she'd probably beat you with a spoon."

Danny shrunk back in his seat a bit. "That was rude again, wasn't it?"

"Not necessarily." Aizawa admitted. "A blunt observation of an individual, yes, but that's not why she'd be upset. She, like many from her generation, is proud of her work and she would not give up the opportunity to continue cooking for anything. She'll likely keep working behind that counter until she does pass and she will be glad to have been healthy enough to keep this all up for that long."

"So, she really loves cooking then." Danny stated.

Aizawa shrugged. "Possibly. She is a great cook. Although I think it's more to do with the work and the time spent well, rather than the task itself."

Danny looked confused and was about to say something when a young woman walked up to their table and placed the food Aizawa had ordered in front of them. She gave a slight bow and walked back to the kitchen without a word.

"Dig in." Aizawa said, already reaching for his chopsticks.

He was pleasantly surprised to see the kid could eat with chopsticks, even if he wasn't holding them quite right. Still, he wasn't making a mess or a fool of himself, so he didn't bother to correct him. Danny took his time trying everything on his plate at first, but at some point his hunger clearly got to him and he was soon wolfing it all down.

"This is really good." he mumbled between bites.

"Just a basic breakfast." Aizawa said. "After this I need to run by my office at work and check a few things. By then the stores will be open and we can get you some more clothes. Then it's back to the apartment for the rest of the day."

Danny nodded and took a swig of miso. "So, um…"

Aizawa looked up and waited. He'd been teaching for far too long to not recognize that tone. This was ether going to be a request or some sort of unorthodox question.

"Is there any chance we could, maybe go by the police station? Just to see how they're coming on the portal gun. Maybe get a date for when they think they'll be done with it? I mean it's not even put together or anything. Basically just a pile of junk that-"

"No."

Danny blinked. "I jus-"

"The detective said he would call when his people found out anything. We will wait for him to call." Aizawa stated.

Danny glared. "Come on, it's just stopping by and asking a question. It's not like the police could be all that busy with super heroes handling all the crime around here."

Aizawa set down his chopsticks and looked Danny in the eye. "That's _not_ how our justice system works, kid. Heroes capture and take down dangerous criminals, yes, but it's the police who handle all the legal affairs that go along with any official arrest. With crime on the rise lately, heroes and police both have been kept quite busy trying to keep the public safe and ensure that panic is kept to a minimum." He paused, letting his words sink in. "You came here at a bad time. Things are beginning to change around here and your sudden appearance has a lot of us on edge. The last thing you want to do, is look too trigger happy in front of officers who already don't agree with letting you walk around freely. Your existence is suspicious enough. I suggest you don't add to their concerns by asking too many questions."

Danny stared down at his food. He was upset, clearly, but was likely having trouble thinking of a good enough argument to get what he wanted. A part of Aizawa thought of offering the kid something else to distract him, but he didn't have the energy to make any other promises today. Instead he finished his meal in silence and watched the kid, sulk in the booth across from him. Aizawa thanked the owner for the meal and escorted the teen out onto the street once more. They walked for a few blocks in silence, nether very eager to start up conversation. The city bustled around them, people rushing to get to work on time and stores prepping to open for the day. More of the usual routine.

"So, we're going to your school next?" Danny asked.

"Yes. The students just started their summer break, so it'll be fairly empty." He sighed. "There's a few things I can't handle over the phone, but it shouldn't take long. Don't wander off and try not to make a scene."

"Stay on the leash and don't 'go ghost', got it." he grumbled.

Aizawa sneered at the attitude. He was about to chastise the kid, when they came around the corner and his focus shifted entirely. "Shit."

A few blocks ahead was the gates of UA High and in front of the gates were a few determined looking people with microphones and news cameras. None of the teachers were out trying to shoo them away, likely because the heightened security meant they were no real threat to anyone inside. Getting past them however was going to be a different story.

"We'll have to circle around back and take one of the side entrances." Aizawa grumbled.

"And how long is that going to take?" Danny asked.

"About two kilometers down the road. Why, do you have somewhere to be?"

"No, but there's an easier way to get passed them." Danny stated, crossing his arms over his chest. "Or through them, in my case."

Aizawa's eyes narrowed. "You are by no means permitted to use your powers in public. I would have thought I made that clear."

"It wasn't in the rules you listed."

"I didn't think it needed stating." Aizawa seethed. "Start walking."

"Just hear me out, for once, ok?" Danny said. "I go invisible and keep a hand on your arm at all times, so you know I didn't run off somewhere. We get up to the group, you squeeze your way though, I'll phase through them and by the time they realize the sudden chill in the air we'll already be inside. 'Kay?"

"And what's there to ensure you don't actually run off?"

Danny shrugged. "Guess you'll just have to trust me." he held out a hand. Aizawa didn't move. "It's not like I have anywhere I can go." Danny added, rolling his eyes. "Come on, it's easier. It's faster. No one's gonna get hurt and I promise I'm not going anywhere. Deal?"

Aizawa waited. It was a good plan, he had to admit. Letting him willingly drop out of his line of sight however, was a risk. He'd let the kid sleep without supervision, only because he knew Danny had been exhausted the night before. Even if he didn't have his eyes on him all day, he'd been keenly aware of where Danny was at any given moment since the scene on the roof. Allowing him to slip out of that awareness, even for a few seconds, was a bad idea.

And yet… the side entrance was tragically far away…

"If you make one wrong move, you're done. Do I make myself clear?"

Danny nodded. "I'll be right next to you the whole time."

Aizawa sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Fine. Let's go." He shoved his hands into his pockets and started walking. Once they were about a block away, Danny put his hand on Aizawa's arm and vanished from sight. He could still feel the kid's hand, but he knew his quirk couldn't work if he couldn't see the kid.

It took only one reporter noticing Aizawa to set the whole flock into a frenzy. They crowded around him, but he made no move to slow down. He saw one camera man step into the space where Danny should have been, but nothing happened. He didn't bump into anything or look around like he'd seen something. Intangibility was quite useful indeed. Aizawa continued to weave his way through the small crowd, always aware of the slight pressure on his arm. They were almost to the gate when a woman stepped in their path, shoving a microphone in Aizawa's face.

" _Eraserhead! People are eager to know. How did you subdue that villain? What really happened on that rooftop? And where is the delinquent now?_ "

It took him a moment to realize they were talking about Danny. He hardly thought of the kid as a villain, but he wasn't stupid enough to try and correct them ether. Give 'em an inch and they'd take a mile.

" _Get out of my way or I will be calling the police._ " He warned.

" _Do you think this has anything to do with the League of Villains? Was this one of their members?_ " she continued.

Aizawa didn't answer and tried to step around her. She cut him off. " _There was an escort to the hospital after the fight but none to the jail or prison after. I have a source that says the villain is no longer in that hospital, so where did he go? Why haven't we been given any answers? The public needs to know-_ "

She froze. A glazed look came over her eyes and Aizawa realized that the pressure on his arm was gone.

No. Not gone, but lessened. Like the kid was just barely touching him with a finger.

A chill ran up his spine and Aizawa watched as the woman stepped out of his way and began methodically flicking her microphone on and off again with one hand, the other hung limply at her side. The cameraman next to her asked if she was alright, but she didn't respond. Suddenly, all attention was on her and the odd behavior. Everyone stared, wondering what she was doing and why she looked so… out of thought.

Then, as suddenly as she had began, she stopped. She swayed where she stood, but was quick to catch herself and straighten up. The pressure returned to Aizawa's arm and he felt a distinct shove. He moved passed the dazed reporter and walked through the gate with ease. The reporter could be heard talking with her cameraman, asking what happened and why hadn't anyone else stopped Aizawa from passing through. They knew better than to try and follow him into the school's yard.

Once they got inside and the door shut behind them, Aizawa whirled and Danny came into view, holding his hands up in surrender.

"Okay, I know that was a little off script, but I kept my word and no one's hurt and we're inside the school."

"What the hell did you do to her?" he asked, not taking his eyes off Danny.

"It's called overshadowing. It works better if I can use all of me, but I promised not to let go of you, so… that's the best I could come up with."

"You were controlling her?"

Danny moved his hands like he was comparing the weight of something. "Sort of. Yeah. Not something I do a lot, but it got her out of the way at least. And, like I said, I kept my word."

Aizawa sighed. "So it would seem."

Danny smiled.

"Come on." Aizawa said, turning on his heel. "Hopefully we won't run into too many people while we're here."


	5. Chapter 5

Danny followed Aizawa through the halls of the massive school, taking in his surroundings as they went. He expected the place to be different from a regular high school, sure, but he had at least expected some posters for upcoming events or a trophy case or two. For the most part, the hallways were bare and pristine white. The massive, sliding doors and tall ceilings were the only things that really stood out, and even then he found himself expecting more.

He peered inside the few open rooms they passed. Again, other than the access of headspace, they looked like average classrooms with desks, cabinets, blackboard and everything. It was all so, normal, if excessively well kept. He almost wondered if people actually came to the school at all. Not a single scuff mark on the floor or a pen mark on the walls.

"Is it always like this?" he mumbled out loud.

"Usually there's students milling about and making noise…" Aizawa said.

"Well, yeah, but like… I don't know. Reminds me more of an office building than a school, if I'm honest."

"UA is one of the top schools in the country. We take in rowdy, inexperienced students and turn out capable, professional heroes, ready to go into the world and do their jobs better than anyone else can. The school is everything it needs to be for the students. It's important to keep up a professional appearance if we expect to continue being taken seriously."

Danny shrugged. "I guess I just expected something more like a training field or a boxing ring. I don't know."

Aizawa glanced over his shoulder. "This is the main building of the school, where all the classwork and proper lessons are held. We have a number of other locations and facilities for the hero training classes."

Danny's brow furrowed. "There's more? Just how big is this school?"

"We have a fairly large patch of land that we can use and build on if the need arises."

Aizawa led Danny up two flights of stairs and down another hallway. This place was as much a maze as the hospital had been.

"I'm guessing you have a pretty large student body, huh?" Danny asked.

Aizawa shrugged. "Depends on the year and the students. The school's courses are divided up into four main sets. The Hero Course is the most desireable and what we are known for, but there's also Business Courses, Hero Support Courses and General Studies. The Hero Course is always full, but some years the other courses have lower turnouts and signups." He rounded a corner and came to a stop in front of a door at the end of the hall. "That said, getting through the entrance exam is made difficult on purpose. We keep our student body smaller than most to ensure that the ones we decide to keep will be guaranteed the best teachers and opportunities. Those who can't meet our standards are not permitted to waist our time."

He slid open the door and stepped inside, motioning for Danny to follow. The room was long and in the middle sat a couple of desks arranged in a U-shape. A teacher's lounge, maybe? He watched as Aizawa walked over to a cabinet and began rifling through a fat stack of papers, grumbling all the while.

"This is going to take longer than I thought." He said, pulling out a stack and setting them on one of the desks."

"Tests that need grading?" Danny asked, eyeing the impressive, paper tower.

"Of course not, we have computers to grade tests." He glared at the stack. "These are release forms that need filled out and signed before being sent to the parents."

"No computers to do that for ya?"

"We tried a more automated system a few years back. The parent's didn't approve of what they deemed a, 'lack of respect' on the part of the staff. So, back to handwriting signatures we went."

"And there's no way you're letting me walk around and explore this place while you handle boring, teacher work, is there?" Danny asked, slumping against one of the walls.

Aizawa glanced up at Danny. "After the stunt you pulled with that reporter. I'm not letting you out of my sight."

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" Danny shot back. "I kept my word that no one would get hurt and managed to keep a hand on you at all times. Do you have any idea how hard it is to hang onto someone and go invisible without making them invisible too?"

"I won't deny it was a good strategy, but it was also unexpected and reckless." Aizawa'a head tilted slightly. "You can pass invisibility onto others?"

"I wouldn't say I 'pass it on', so much as if I'm touching them, things like invisibility and intangibility can extend to their bodies as well. They can't really do anything about it, except let go. I'm still the one in control of it."

"My, my, that does sound impressive." came a voice from the door.

Danny whirled around, but no one was there. He almost wondered if the person was invisible, when the voice came again.

"Down here, actually."

Danny looked down and reflexively took a step back. Standing no more than three feet tall, was a white furred creature in a dress shirt and neatly pressed vest. He had pants and shoes and a long tail that continued to flex and sway as he stood there, looking up at Danny. His face was long and came to a pointed snout with one, long scar stretching across his face.

Aizawa said something in Japanese, a greeting, Danny recognized. The creature responded in kind, waving a paw at the older man, who didn't bother to look up from his papers. Then the creature looked back at Danny, black, beady eyes offering no expression.

"Well, then, hello. I am The Principal. I was wondering when Aizawa would be bringing you by." He held out a paw for Danny to shake.

Danny just stared back. "Uh… ok." he hesitantly shook the thing's paw. "I'm Danny, nice to meet you."

"Indeed! I am a one-of-a-kind creature, after all." he said. "No one's quite sure what I am, but I don't mind that. I'm the Principal of this fine establishment and I'm glad to welcome you to our school."

"Uh huh…" Danny paused. "Uh, so, how do you know english?"

"Oh I learned a number of languages many years ago. Funny, the things you fill your time with when you're bored. Though I rarely get the chance to put my knowledge into practice." He turned to Aizawa then. "You seem like you could use some privacy."

"I'm not leaving this kid in your care." he stated.

"You think I'm incapable of looking after one teenager? I do run a high school, after all."

"I think _this_ teen's abilities are too unpredictable and his motives still unclear. I can take him down with a single glance, if he tries to do anything. Clearly I'm the best suited to handling him." Danny frowned. He was getting tired of everyone assuming he was up to no good. He couldn't really blame them, but it was still aggravating.

"I don't doubt that." the Principal said. "However, there are other factors at play here and I can think of a few other capable teachers here who could keep this boy in check long enough to give you a break for a few hours. After all, you can't continue to watch over this boy if you're not functioning at 100% yourself."

Aizawa, didn't say anything at first. Then he glanced up at Danny. "When you become invisible or intangible, do you have control of your senses? Sight? Sound? Touch?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I?" Danny asked. It seemed like such an odd question. Of course he had his senses. How could he move around and function in his ghost form if he didn't.

Aizawa glanced back at the Principal. The two shared a look. The principal began to say something in Japanese, but Aizawa cut him off with an annoyed tone. "Fine then. Take him. But if anything happens, I'm not responsible."

"Of course! Clearly I'm stealing him away for the time being. Nothing will be held against you." The Principal said, swishing his tail from side to side. He looked up at Danny and motioned towards the door. "Now then, would you like a tour of our wonderful school?"

"Uh, sure." He looked over his shoulder at Aizawa before leaving. "I promise, I'm not going to cause any trouble, okay?"

"Don't make promises you can't keep, kid." the man said, not bothering to look up from his papers.

Danny stepped out of the room and glanced down at the Principal. He was glad to have escaped the hours of sitting in a room and doing nothing, but he didn't really know what to make of this creature. The only things he'd seen like this before were ghosts, but this was an entirely different beast all together. "So… are you a shapeshifter then?" he asked, walking alongside the creature.

The Principal laughed. "Oh heavens no. My appearance has nothing to do with my quirk, young man."

"Oh." Danny paused. "Okay, then what is your quirk?"

The Principal tapped at his head with a finger. "High Spec. I'm quite a bit smarter than most humans, you see and I have a gift for formulating strategies even in high stress situations."

"That sounds useful." Danny said.

"Oh yes, it most certainly is. I am curious though," he said, looking up at Danny, "what might your quirk be?"

Danny ran a hand through his hair. "Uh… well going by what I know about how super powers work for you guys here, I don't really think my powers can be called a quirk."

"Is that so?"

"I don't know. It's weird. I'm still trying to figure out how everything works here and not being able to read or understand anyone besides the few english speakers I've come across isn't exactly helping."

"Not knowing the language can make things difficult. You could always learn Japanese." he said. "I had to learn it after my quirk activated. Thankfully it's not one of the more difficult languages to learn."

Danny shrugged. "I really don't think I'm going to be here long enough for that to matter."

The Principal nodded. "I see. Still, you can always benefit from more knowledge. So what powers do _you_ possess then?"

Danny sighed. "Intangibility, invisibility, flight, turning parts of myself into gas, apparently, uh…" he started counting off on his fingers as he spoke. "I can sense when other ghosts are nearby, I'm lighter, faster and stronger in my ghost form."

"Ghosts? How interesting. Do continue, if you please."

"Uh, well there's ecto blasts, ecto shields, oh there's this thing I learned recently where I can control a sort of ice power. Still not very good at it. And then there's a bunch of things I can't really do without a lot of thought and luck. Making duplicates of myself is the main one I'm still trying to figure out. And…" he paused. "Then there's the wail, but I try to save that for emergencies only."

"My, my. That is quite a list of powers." The Principal said. "I'd quite like to see them in action, though I doubt Eraser would approve of such a display without his own supervision. You said you learned some of these abilities recently?"

Danny chuckled. "Well, I'm still learning most of them, honestly. I've only had these powers for a little over a year now."

"Really? Fascinating. If these were not abilities you were born with, then how did you acquire them?"

"That's a bit of a long story. Basically, I had to get electrocuted and pumped full of ghost energy to end up with this mess." he said, making his eyes glow green as he looked down at the Principal.

"Oh my. That sounds absolutely dreadful." he said, his tone remaining light and chipper. "Did you get revenge on your captors?"

"What?" Danny faltered and shook his head. "No. No. It's not like that. It was an accident. I went messing with some experimental stuff that I shouldn't have and I paid the price."

"Ah. I see. Accidents do happen, no matter how much we may try to avoid them."

"Yeah well. Not exactly a fun experience, to say the least." Danny said. "Electrocution is not a fun way to die."

The Principal looked up at him. "You speak as if you're already dead."

Danny shrugged. "Half of me lives and eats and breathes and the other doesn't. Being half ghost, means being half dead as far as I'm concerned."

"Mmm" he hummed. "I don't know if I'd agree with that logic. But if you're comfortable with that thought process then far be it from me to try and change your mind."

The two continued down a flight of stairs and Danny had to hold back a laugh when the Principal climbed up onto the handrail and slid down it to get to the floor below. His upbeat attitude, though a bit odd, was a nice change of pace from Aizawa's dreary outlook and mannerisms. He was surprisingly easy to talk to as well. He didn't freak out at anything Danny said and there was no fear when he admitted what he could do. Then again, he'd only known this guy for all of five minutes. There was no telling what was actually going on in that critter's head.

Danny stepped around the corner and followed the Principal a for a few feet, when another person walked out of a room up ahead. A tall, thin man with raggedy blonde hair and an ill-fitting yellow suit was walking in their direction. Danny's brow furrowed. For all the talk Aizawa had said about this being a prestigious school, they certainly seemed to hire more than a few bedraggled hobos.

"Ah, Toshinori! What excellent timing!" the Principal said, waving a paw at the man.

The man stopped, seemingly caught off guard and waved at the Principal. He glanced at Danny out of the corner of his eye, but seemed to be trying to hid behind the few strands of hair that hung in his face. "H-hello, Principal Nezu. What brings you down here and… why are we speaking in english?"

"Why, for the sake of present company, of course!" he said, gesturing at Danny with a paw. Danny waved hesitantly. "I'm sure you heard of the little fiasco Eraserhead had the other day with a mysterious young hero. Turns out the child is American, isn't that interesting?"

"I see…" the blonde man said, hesitantly. Danny got the feeling that this guy didn't want to be there at the moment.

"Oh yes. An american teen with seemingly no knowledge of our world. We were just having a delightful conversation about how quirks work and it seems he knows basically nothing. Not unlike a small child, actually."

"Hey!" Danny piped up.

The Principal, looked over his shoulder at Danny. "Well, you are incredibly ill-informed, that much is obvious. Do you dissagree?"

"Well, no, but-"

"Then my point is verified." he turned back to the blonde guy, without giving Danny the chance to argue. "Danny, this is one of our teachers, Mr. Toshinori. Toshinori, Danny. Just Danny. He failed to give me a full name upon our introduction. No doubt he's as unfamiliar with formality as he is quirks and heros."

Danny glared at the little creature. Suddenly his friendly demeanor seemed very two faced.

The older man seemed to relax noticeably and held out a hand. Danny shook it. "Danny Fenton." he said. "I wasn't trying to be rude, sorry."

The man chuckled. "Don't worry, Danny, I spent quite a bit of time in the States when I was younger. I'm used to the more relaxed introductions. It's nice to meet you."

Danny smiled. "You too."

"Rumor has it Aizawa offered to keep you with him instead of handing you over to the authorities." Toshinori said. "Not sure if that's better or worse, to be honest."

Danny shrugged. "I mean he's not the friendliest person, but he seems nice enough and it's better than being stuck in a prison cell."

Toshinori frowned. "I highly doubt you'd be held in prison, for what barely amounted to a brawl yesterday. From what I could tell in the video clips, you were avoiding hits and not throwing many of your own."

"Well, I may have thrown a few," Danny mumbled, "but I wasn't looking for a fight ether. I just needed to get my stuff and get out of there."

The man crossed his arms. "Well, you know, running from the scene of an incident does make you look like the guilty party."

"What incident? I fell through a portal and couldn't get back through before it closed!" Danny said. "Even if that's considered worth being arrested for, it's not like I knew that's what was going on. Japanese isn't exactly required curriculum in the US."

"Hey, hey, calm down, kid. No need to get all heated." the man said, holding up a hand. "I just meant that, from their point of view, they probably thought you were another villain."

"You guys got a lot of fifteen year old villains falling through portals around here?"

"Not usually teens, but rest is distressingly accurate."

Danny paused as the gears began to turn in his head. "There's villains coming through portals into this world?"

"They use portals similar to the one you came through to travel, yes, though I highly doubt they're coming from a different world. What makes you say that?"

Before Danny could answer, the Principal piped up. "It would appear that, young Fenton here is under the impression that he's from a different dimension than our own, thus explaining his lack of knowledge and the multitude of powers he possesses."

Toshinori's eyes narrowed. "Multiple powers?"

"Uh… yeah. Apparently that's odd for you guys here…" Danny said.

"It's not entirely unheard of. Some children are lucky enough to directly inherit both of their parents quirks in earnest, rather than a combination of the two, but these are considerably rare. Outside of those circumstances, and some mutation quirks, multiple powers is considered by most to be impossible."

"Fair enough." Danny said, with a shrug. "I'm pretty used to being an impossible wierdo back home anyways. Only difference here is I don't have to keep my powers a secret."

Toshinori chuckled. "Yeah, that can get annoying at times."

Danny's brow furrowed. "How would you know? Aizawa said the only people who keep their identities secret are usually villains."

"There's plenty of reasons, even in today's world, to keep one's true identity secret, kid." he said. "Personal vendettas between heroes and villains may have mostly died off when quirks became mainstream, but there's still potential for such dangerous rivalries to arise. Protecting the things we care about becomes harder when anyone can go online and search for a hero's address or find out who they're related to with ease. Anonymity is hard to come by, but if you have it, it's a very valuable thing. As someone who clearly understands that idea, I'd ask you not to pry into my personal matters."

That comment made Danny want to ask a billion questions. Suddenly this gruff, skeletal teacher had gone from stranger to kindred spirit. But he kept his mouth shut. Even if we was only going to be in this world for a short while, he didn't want to hurt anyone while he was here or disrupt their lives any more than he had to. He nodded. "I guess that's fair."

"I was taking young Danny here to see Present Mic and show him a tour of the school, would you care to join us?" The Principal asked.

"Can't. I've got something I'm in the middle of." Toshinori said, pointing down the hall.

"Not rushing out onto the streets again, are you?" The Principal said.

"No, no. Just going to see one of the students about their score in their finals."

"Ah yes. Tell young Midoriya to keep up the good work then." The Principal said, turning on his heel and continuing down the hall without another word.

"Uh, it was nice meeting you." Danny said.

Toshinori nodded. "You as well. If you ever need anything, I'm usually in the teacher's lounge. I know going to another country can feel pretty alienating at times. No doubt another dimension is just as disorienting, or worse. If you need someone to talk to, come find me."

Danny smiled. "I'll keep that in mind. Thanks."

Toshinori turned and continued down the hall without another word and Danny hurried to catch up to the Principal, who hadn't managed to get too far on those short legs. It seemed odd. So far he'd yet to run into anyone who actively disliked him. They didn't seem willing to trust him with much, which was understandable, but they weren't treating him like some strange thing to be feared ether. The people here were hearing him out and, even if they thought he was nuts, they were still treating him like a person. Hell, the people back home didn't even give him that courtesy.

It wasn't perfect, of course, but it was a breath of fresh air. He almost wished he could stay a bit longer. Almost.


	6. Chapter 6

_"So you did decided to bring the kid to the school after all, huh?"_ Mic mused.

 _"I had some things to handle and I wasn't about to leave him in my home by himself."_ Aizawa's voice grumbled from the cell phone.

 _"Riiiight. Right."_ Mic said, spinning in his chair to look out the window. _"It had nothing to do with the excellent idea your's truly mentioned yesterday."_

A beleaguered sigh crackled from the other end of the line. _"I called to let you know that Nezu is escorting the kid down to you. It shouldn't take me more than an hour to get these papers done, then I'll take him off your hands."_

 _"Who says you need to take him back at all?"_ Mic asked, twirling a pen between his fingers.

 _"Hizashi-"_

 _"Hold it right there."_ Mic interrupted. _"How long has it been since you got a full night's sleep?"_

 _"I'm fine. This is more important."_

 _"Well, which is it?"_ Mic asked. _"Are you fine or is watching the kid more important?"_ he grinned and chuckled. _"Come on, Shouta, we both know you were burning the candle at both ends before that kid even showed up."_ his cheery voice faded to one of concern. _"You sound exhausted. What time did you even get home from the hospital last night?"_

 _"Hizashi the kid is dangerous. He's not like the students you're used to. He has multiple abilities that we don't know the full range and power of."_

 _"No different than arriving onto an emergency scene, not knowing who you're gonna face."_ Mic said. _"Look if you're that concerned, I promise I'll hand him back over at the end of the day. But I am going to keep him for a while so that you can get some sleep. Got it?"_

 _"I said I'm fine."_ Aizawa hissed.

 _"You can thank me later!"_ Mic said. Before Aizawa could protest, Mic ended the call and slipped his phone back into his pocket.

Mic stood and began piling up the papers on his desk. He was grateful now that he'd decided to come in early after all. He'd been wanting to get a peek at this mysterious kid ever since he'd seen the news footage.

He went to go slide his classroom door open and noticed a figure out of the corner of his eye. Not ten feet down the hall, Nezu and a dark haired, rather normal looking teen, were walking towards him. Excellent timing, as always. Mic waved to the pair.

" _Hey! Hey! Hey!"_ Mic greeted them. _"Aizawa just called. I take it this is the kid everyone's been making a fuss over?"_ Mic asked, gesturing at the teen with a thumb.

" _Indeed."_ Nezu said. Then the principal began speaking in english. "Our American friend here is, Danny Fenton." He then turned his head to Danny. "This is Present Mic, our English teacher and event narrator here at the school."

"Oh, uh, hello." Danny said, giving a brief wave in greeting.

"Hello! Hello, Fentonio!" Mic said, throwing up a pair of finger guns, since the kid didn't seem to want to shake hands.

"You can just call me Danny." he said. Mic could have sworn he heard a hint of agitation in the kid's voice so he decided not to push the issue.

"You got it, Dan, my man."

"Seriously, just Danny." He said, a bit more sternly this time. "Please."

" _Picky picky."_ Mic mumbled under his breath. "Alright then, Danny it is."

"Excellent!" Nezu said, waving a paw. "Now that introductions are out of the way, I can leave this young teen in your care. Do be careful now and try to keep any excessive uses of power to a minimum. Recovery Girl has already left for her vacation and I'd hate to have to call an ambulance to the school."

"You got it, Principal Nezu!" Mic said, flashing a smile at the creature.

"Well then, I shall see you two later then." He said, turning on his heel and making his way back up the hall. "Ta!"

Danny watched the Principal walk away without another word. Mic cleared his throat and Danny turned and blinked up at him.

"So, Danny, I was thinkin' we could hop on outa here and swing by the mall for while. If I had to hazard a guess, Shouta hasn't gotten around to getting you any long term supplies, huh?"

"Shouta?" Danny asked. "You mean Mr. Aizawa?"

"That's the one! He and I've been buds since we attended school here. Hence the first name basis." Mic sighed. "Those were some crazy days, alright. Come on! We haven't got all day!" he said and started making his way to the faculty garage.

"Uh, are you sure it's a good idea to just leave?" Danny asked, following behind. "I was under the impression I was under house arrest and had to stay with Aizawa till I got police clearance"

"You're required to be under supervision." Mic explained, holding up a finger as they walked. "While the authorities would probably prefer Shouta being your guardian, for the time being I'm sure I can keep you out of trouble."

"I just don't want Aizawa getting in trouble if I get caught, that's all." Danny said, scratching at the back of his head.

Mic chuckled. "One day and The Great Sulk already has you wrapped around his finger? That didn't take long."

Danny grumbled something under his breath that Mic couldn't quite pick out. Mic just kept on walking as he spoke. "Don't get me wrong, Shouta's a great guy once you get to know him, but most of the students and even some of the staff have little more than of a fearful respect of the guy, ya dig?"

Danny shrugged. "I mean, he's kinda intimidating, but he seems like a good enough guy. After all, he volunteered to take me in, when he didn't have to, right? That's gotta count for something."

"Not the best argument, but not the worst one ether." Mic looked over his shoulder at the kid and smiled. "Sounds like you got a good head on your shoulders kid. Don't go losin' it anytime soon."

As the two continued down the halls, Mic asked Danny all the usual questions about where he came from and what the fight downtown had been about and Danny answered them in kind. He kept the ghost stuff to a minimum, thankfully. Following the idea of multiple dimensions was hard enough without mixing ghosts into the chaos. Still, Mic could tell the kid had given this speech before, no doubt a few times. He didn't seem too bothered by his situation, but he also wasn't very enthused ether. His home in the other dimension was only briefly mentioned and his focus seemed to be more goal oriented. _This is what happened. Here is where I am. That is what I need to do._ No room to let himself be human about his situation. Mic could see the potential for an emotional break was building.

"So I take it the minute the police get done with your portal thing, you're gonna scram, huh?" Mic asked.

"That's the plan." Danny said. "I'd like to get back home before everything goes to shit."

"And you think you're the only one who can keep things in check back home?"

"Well, no. Not exactly. I mean, there's other ghost hunters in town that can keep most things at least under control. Not many, but a few, including my parents. But…" Danny paused.

"Not exactly relaxing knowing your home could be under attack and you're stuck here, huh?" Mic surmised.

Danny shrugged, but didn't look up. "Yeah… I guess." Something in the way he spoke told Mic there was more to the story. If the kid didn't want to talk though, he wasn't going to try and make him. At least he was thinking about it though.

The pair made it down to the car park and Mic led the way between the handful of faculty cars. Most of the staff ether walked to the school or took public transit, but a few drove in from time to time. As for Mic, he had his own personal ride that he took everyday. Halfway down the lot was a black sports car with red racing stripes on either side, the same shade of red as his belt. Mic pulled out his keys, clicked a button and the car roared to life.

Danny cursed and jumped back in surprise. Mic laughed. "What? Never seen a remote start before?" He asked.

"A warning would've been nice!" Danny said, glaring at Mic. "Not like I had my heart stop two days ago or anything."

"Lighten up, kid." Mic said with a wave of his hand. "You're fine. Besides, I don't exactly get to show this baby off as much as I'd like to. That was too good a chance to pass up."

Danny rolled his eyes.

"Alright. Alright. No surprises for the killjoy. Got it." Mic said. He clicked another button and the car unlocked. "Hop in! The Mall should be pretty empty on the weekday like this. With any luck we'll get there and back in a couple hours and you'll actually have some stuff to live off of for a week or two."

Mic swung open the door and slid behind the wheel, his hair only just touching the roof of the car. Danny squeezed into the passenger side, admiring the dark leather interior.

"I doubt I'll be stuck here that long." He said as Mic swung out of the parking spot and cruised out onto the street. "Maybe a couple shirts and some socks would be nice, but that's it. Just enough to get through another day or two."

Mic shook his head. "I don't know how legal stuff gets handled in your world, but here these kinda things can take some time. Your case isn't the only one that the fuzz is workin' on and I doubt it's the most pressing."

Danny blinked at him. "A high schooler falls through a portal in downtown, escapes two pro-heroes and is apparently crazy powerful, even by you guys' standards, and that's still not the most pressing matter here?"

Mic glanced at the kid out of the corner of his eye. "Kid, you have no idea what you've fallen into and if I were you I'd be patient and try not to get too involved."

"So my problems aren't important enough?"

"I'm saying, you're one kid and we have an entire country to protect and manage and things aren't exactly steady right now." Mic explained. "You're going to have to accept that it isn't fair, but the boys in blue are doing the best they can. Be patient. They won't forget about ya. These things just take time."

Danny sighed and slumped down into the seat. "Yeah, alright… I guess."

"Awesome! Now then, onto more relevant matters. What kinda style do ya like?"

"Style?" Danny asked.

"Clothes, kid. Are you the cool type? Goth? Sporty? Fancy?"

"Uh… I don't know. Pants that fit and shirts that aren't too tight?" Danny shrugged.

Mic groaned. "Ughhh. You're as bad as Shouta. Then again, at least he has an aesthetic he sticks to. Ok then! How 'bout we swing in and grab the basics first and figure it out from there, alright?"

"Uh, ok."

"Alriiiiight!"

There's nothing quite like shopping for underwear in another country, where you can't read the labels, you don't recognize the brand, and the only interpreter you have is a guy in his thirties that you only met half an hour ago. Thankfully that part of the shopping trip was blissfully short, even with Mic stopping to sign autographs for a pair of fangirls, and the pair were already headed to another store with seven days worth of undergarments tucked away in a bag. Danny found himself staring at the mannequins in the windows as they passed by. Fashion here was certainly brighter and more colorful than what he was used to back home. What was more interesting though was how a number of stores seemed to make special clothes for people with significantly different body types, due to their quirks. One mannequin in such a store sported a form fitting outfit, snugly clinging to a four armed torso and extending down a long tail. The sight brought a thought to his mind.

"Hey, Mic? What happens to someone with quirks like _that_ if Aizawa uses his quirk on them?" Danny asked. "Do they just, appear like a normal person?"

Mic looked over his shoulder at Danny and then glanced at the mannequin. "Not quite, kid. Shouta's quirk doesn't work on mutations."

"Mutations?"

Mic raised a brow and looked at the kid for a minute. "He didn't explain anything to you did he?"

Danny shrugged. "Not unless it was important at the time, I guess."

Mic sighed and started walking again. Danny followed close behind. "Mutation quirks are ones where the quirk affects a person's anatomy in a drastic way." Mic explained. "See, if your quirk involves having an extra body part at all times or your guts are arranged in some unique way, then that counts as a mutation. Shouta's quirk, thankfully doesn't work on those kinds of folks."

"Why do you say that?"

"Why?" he chuckled. "Hell between having to be careful not to accidentally kill someone, by making a vital organ disappear and being constantly asked to make someone look 'normal' for once, he'd be more of a basket case than he already is."

Danny took a moment to arrange his thoughts. "So then, why does his quirk work on me?"

Mic stopped and turned his head to Danny. "Huh?"

"Well, if I'm getting this right, I'd be considered a mutation too." Danny said. "My body, the way it works, it's not normal, regardless of which form I'm in. And, when he tried to use his quirk on me on the roof…" He faltered, not wanting to delve too deeply into that particular memory. "It's like, shutting down my ghost half made the rest of me shut down too. If he's not supposed to be able to accidentally kill other people, why did it affect me at all?"

Mic shook his head. "Kid, I have no idea. You're pretty different, even by our standards. If your whole story about being from another world is right, then maybe that has somethin' to do with it? Hell, I don't know. I'm a radio DJ and an english teacher. This kinda stuff is way my paygrade."

"Yeah. I get it." Danny mumbled. The two started walking again and slipped into another store. "So, you're a radio DJ?" Danny asked.

"Yeaaaah!" Mic exclaimed. "Every Friday night I grace our fair city with the most rockin' tunes I can find. No commercials, no downers, no paid pop pieces. Just the best of the best for all the party peeps out there!"

"Sounds nice." Danny admitted. "I just assumed you were a pro-hero, like Aizawa."

"Oh, I'm a pro too." Mic corrected. "This player's got three jobs under his belt, though the pro-hero thing isn't something I do very often. Teaching and Radio are my main gigs."

Danny's brow furrowed ashe went about skimming through a rack of t-shirts. "So then, how do pro-hero jobs even work here? Aizawa made it sound like any other job."

"Depends on the organization you sign up with, kid." Mic said, leaning against a shelf that held stacks of folded pants. "See, my set-up is on an as-needed basis. They got a ton of full timers on hand to deal with most of the crime they handle. Being signed on with a hero organization just ensures that I get paid _if_ I do decide to intervene and I got lawyers in suits to cover my ass _if_ I screw up. Though, that's only happened once. I got a pretty good track record goin', if I do say so myself."

Danny's nose wrinkled up in disgust. "I don't know. The idea of getting paid for trying to help people just sounds too easy to corrupt. And like, yeah I get it, full time heroes need to eat too, but…" he sighed. "It just doesn't sound right to me."

Mic was silent for a moment, something Danny thought was odd. The guy seemed to really enjoying talking. When he did speak up, his voice lacked it's usual zeal. "You're not the only one to think like that, kid."

"Oh?"

Mic nodded. "We've been havin' issues with villains trying to use the idea of corrupt heroes to validate their actions. One of 'em even managed to get his message out to the public... and people have been listening." he paused, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Ever since then people have been a bit more critical of everything. How we react and how quickly we do so. What actions we take and who takes them. As of late, heroes have been second guessing themselves a lot. Only a matter of time before that kind of people pleasing behavior gets someone killed. And even then, the public's gonna be lookin' for someone to blame it all on. That's not even counting how the villains are planning to use this kind of undertoned chaos to their advantage."

The subdued way he spoke sent a chill up Danny's spine. Piece by piece he'd been learning about this world and how it worked, but this… this suddenly made it feel real to him. He hadn't just landed in a utopia with a few intrusive reporters and minor bad guys to contend with. This place had social issues bubbling beneath its surface, just like any other society back home. Everything came back to politics and the balance between those in power and the majority and he just happened to arrive when an eruption seemed imminent.

"So… an unknown kid falls through a portal, like the ones villains have used before, displays an unheard of number of quirks, gets taken into custody by a pro-hero and disappears from the public eye." Danny said, piecing together the thought as he spoke. "That kind of thing… that would escalate the already tense mood. Wouldn't it?"

Mic slid his shades down slightly, looking Danny in the eye. "You're not an idiot, I'll give ya that, but I wouldn't flatter myself too much if I were you." In one smooth motion the glasses slid back into place and Mic was absently fiddling with the hem of his jacket. "Something was bound to set the civilians off eventually. Besides, I think everyone who's met you has figured out you didn't do this on purpose. Of all the things to get the public in a frenzy, at least this is something that doesn't mean any harm. The big wigs will figure out how to smooth things over, nothing disastrous will happen, the people will calm down and then we can get back to handling the real problems."

"What do you guys consider 'real problems'." Danny asked, using his fingers to make air quotes.

Mic turned his head towards Danny. "Well, for starters, we've been here for what seems like hours and you still haven't picked anything out. Come on, kid! They're t-shirts. They're all tacky and cheap. Just grab a few and let's get into the quality stuff already."

Danny raised a brow at the older man. "You're the one who brought me in here. I'm just following you." He wasn't exactly pleased at the change in topic, but at the same time, he had been surprised to get as much information as he did out of Mic. Compared to Aizawa, Mic was an open book.

"Yeah, but I didn't expect you to gravitate toward the sales rack. I mean, you're shopping on someone else's bill, kid. Enjoy yourself a little."

Danny looked up at the red sign above the rack that he still couldn't read and shrugged. "Force of habit I guess. Besides, it's familiar. I'm not exactly keen on walking out of here, head-to-toe in black leather, like you." As he reached the back of the rack he came across a deep blue shirt that a moon and stars scattered across the front of it. He held the shirt up to himself. It looked like it was the right size and the design wasn't too obnoxious ether. A smile pulled at his lips.

"Seriously? That's the one you like?" Mic asked, incredulously.

"What can I say? I've always liked space and astronauts and stuff." Danny stated, shrugging his shoulders. His smile didn't falter.

"Ugh. Alright then. Grab a few more shirts and a couple pants and we'll head out."

A sudden idea broke Danny from his train of thought. "Hey, Mic, um… do you think it'd be ok if we stopped by the police station on the way back to the school? I know they're probably not done inspecting my stuff, but I just wanna check and see how they're coming. It is my only way back home and… I mean… being kept out of the loop is pretty cruddy."

Mic straitened one side of his minute mustache and hummed in thought. "I guess stopping by just to check in isn't that bad, but if they're slammed, you're just gonna have to wait, kid. Like I said, there's a lot more goin' on lately, so getting an audience isn't very likely."

Danny grinned. "That's fine. I just… I just wanna try, you know?"

"Yeah. Yeah, alright. It's on the way, anyways."

Danny grinned. Finally, something was going the way he wanted it to. All he needed to do now was finish this stupid shopping trip and get on the road. He grabbed a few more simple shirts and went over to check out the pants. Once Mic explained how the sizing worked, Danny quickly snagged a couple in his size and made a beeline for the checkout.

Mic laughed. "Hell, if I'd known that promising you a mini field trip would get you to hurry up I'd have said something ages ago."

Mic paid for the clothes and the two exited the store, this time with Danny in the lead.

"Slow your roll, kid. We got a couple more things to grab before we head out." Mic said.

"Like what?"

"A brush, for one thing." Mic said, ruffling Danny's thick head of hair. "And a few other essentials would probably be in your best interest. Unless you wanna run around with bad breath every day."

Mic took the lead and Danny followed, cupping a hand over his mouth and checking just to make sure his breath hadn't been too oppressive this whole time. Satisfied that the suggestion was more precautionary than indicative, he followed Mic as they continued through the mall. If nothing else, Danny was glad to have found at least one thing he actually liked here. Maybe he'd take that shirt back with him when he finally _did_ go home.

"Hey, Mic."

"What's shakin', bacon?" Mic quipped, winking at a group of young ladies as they passed by.

"Well, I was wondering. Do you guys have a space exploration program here?" Danny asked.

"Sheesh, you weren't kidding about being a star nerd, were you?"

Danny chose not to respond to the comment. "Back in my world, different countries have different space programs. The US has NASA, Russia has Roscomos and the Japan I know has JAXA." Danny explained. "Guess I was just curious if a world with super heroes still had interests and funds to explore space."

"Oh, yeah, JAXA's still a thing around here." Mic said.

"Wait really?"

"Yeah, sure. Not as big a deal as it was thirty or forty years ago, but they're still around. From what I've heard they mostly devote resources to projects that are a bit more useful in our current society, but every couple of years they'll send a rocket up for one reason or another."

Danny couldn't help the smile that was plastered on his face. "And NASA? Are they in this world too?"

"Ehhh." Mic waved a hand. "Probably? Look I don't really keep up with all that sciency mumbo jumbo, kid. You wanna know about the latest and greatest musicians around the globe, I'm here for ya. Need the hot news about up and coming heroes, I'm your man. You want to know who the sciency folks are sending up into space, you'll have better luck looking that up on your phone."

Danny gave a dry chuckle. "Heh. That'd be great if I _had_ a phone." he grumbled.

"Oh right! We should totally add that to the list." Mic said, snapping his fingers.

"What? No no no. That's totally unnecessary." Danny protested. "Like I said, I'm only going to be here for a couple of days. Three at the most. All of which is going to be spent under house arrest, why would I need a cell phone?"

"You know, you're right, Danny." Mic started, notes of thick sarcasm in his voice. "Why would you need a tiny computer you can hold in your hand? After all it's not like you're going to spend those next few days at a guy's apartment, unable to leave, with only daytime television and a handful of stray cats to keep you company. Here I thought having a device to keep you entertained would be beneficial, but it sounds like you're going to have wayyyyy more fun without one." Mic peered over his shoulder at Danny, who crossed his arms and glared back.

"Look, the clothes are one thing, but buying me a phone? Seriously? How much do phones here cost anyway? It can't be cheap and even if I did use it often, only using it for three days is hardly going to make a money drop like that worth it." He sighed. "I appreciate the generosity, but I can't accept that."

" _Oh, good lord._ " Mic mumbled in japanese. "Kid I'm the last person you should worry about when it comes to financial woes. I've got one full time job at the most prestigious school in the country, where I make enough to live comfortably. Then there's the part time on Fridays that I get handsomely paid for, based almost entirely on star-power alone. And, while I don't do hero work often, the few times I do, I make BANK. Where do you think that hotrod of mine came from? Not from inheritance, I'll tell you that."

"Ok, but still-"

"No buts, Danio." Mic said, wrapping an arm around Danny's shoulders and ushering him into a tech store. "Look, if it makes you feel better, once you pop off back home, I'll sign the damned thing and sell it for a profit online. Deal?"

"I guess?"

"Alright!" Mic waved to a man behind a counter, who eagerly rushed forward once he recognized who had entered the store.

The entire transaction took about half an hour, of which Danny sat, slumped into a chair and unable to understand the conversation in front of him. He did recognize a few choice words Mic spoke in english though. An occasional "Alright" and "Totally" were sprinkled in with the Japanese, which Danny found both odd and a little humorous. By the end of it though, Mic handed Danny the phone and showed him how to turn it on and fixed the settings to english for him. The tech was more advanced than the average smart-phone back home, but not by too much. He was still able to wrap his head around it if nothing else.

Once they were out of the phone store, they stopped into one more place and got some basic toiletries for Danny. A hair brush, some toothpaste and a toothbrush, a razor, etc. More than Danny had expected to grab, but nothing he could really argue with ether. Even if he was going to be spending most of his time stuck in the apartment, he didn't want to stink to high heaven the entire time. Besides, getting all this stuff helped keep up the appearance that he intended to be a good little foreigner and wait patiently for things to get worked out for him.

With the last bag of goods in hand the pair made their way back to the car and headed off to the station. This time, Danny was more interested in the buildings they passed than the fancy car's upholstery. If his plan was going to work, he'd need to figure out how to get to the station himself. Even if he couldn't read the street signs, he could remember landmarks. There weren't too many to latch onto, but the ones that stuck out, thankfully, _really_ stuck out.

The car rounded a corner and drove for two blocks before slowing. A building up ahead with a large set of stone steps leading up to the main entrance, was crowded with people, many of which were holding camera equipment or microphones. In the center of the crowd was a large, metal SWAT-like vehicle, from which a few officers in blue uniforms were leading a person in cuffs out onto the sidewalk. The criminal had a mass of tentacle-like growths coming from the top of their head and continuing down their back, all of which had been restrained.

As the officer's started to make their way through the crowd of reporters, Present Mic groaned. "Yeahhhhhh… I don't think this is the best time to stop by, kid."

"But we're so close." Danny protested. "I mean, there's gotta be more officers inside who can help, right?"

Mic shook his head. "I'm more concerned about the press, kid. We've been tryin' to keep you out of the public eye, remember?" He put his foot back on the gas and the care steadily moved past the scene. "Last thing we need is for them to see you with me, put two and two together and get your alter ego plastered all over the news. Sorry, but it's out of the question for today. Maybe you can ask Shouta to run you by tomorrow or somethin'."

Danny sighed. "I doubt it. Thanks for trying though."

"Hey, no prob, kiddo." Mic said, turning up the radio. "Ooo! Here's a good one. This single just dropped a few days ago. I'm totally gonna be jamming it this week on the show."

Mic started singing with the music, but Danny wasn't listening. Whether or not he'd gotten to check on the portal gun didn't really matter. He knew where it was being kept now and he knew how to get there. All he needed was an opportunity to get out from under his guardians' watch and he'd be home free.


	7. Chapter 7

By the time Mic and Danny made it back to the school, Aizawa was about an hour into a deeper-than-usual sleep. The papers had been signed, folded and packed into envelopes to be sent out to the student's homes and Aizawa was curled up on the floor, in a corner behind one of the filing cabinets, tucked into his yellow sleeping bag. No doubt he was still sleeping light enough to hear if anyone were to open the door, so Mic opted to let the exhausted teacher catch another hour of shut-eye before handing the kid over.

Instead, they dropped off the bags of clothes and things in Mic's classroom and Mic took Danny on a proper tour of the school grounds. First they stopped by the weight room and the gym, where Danny was openly amazed at the size of some of the weights piled in one corner of the room. Of course students with strength based quirks needed to be able to push their limits just as much as the other students, but hearing about a half-ton weight and seeing one elicit very different reactions. Then they stopped by the auditorium, which gave Danny a much better idea of the size of the student body. From there Mic escorted him to the training areas, where students did more quirk-based training. Danny nearly jumped out of his skin when a statue in the corner of one of the Gymnasiums, turned and walked in their direction, waving at them.

Mic waved back, greeting the angular creature in Japanese and it spoke back to him. Mic gestured to Danny a few times during the conversation, but didn't bother to translate what was being said, so Danny just stood there awkwardly trying not to stare at the living cinder block. They continued back and forth for a bit and the stone-like person soon walked away, returning to the corner he'd previously occupied.

"Ok, soooo… who's that?" Danny asked, when Mic didn't say anything.

" _Huh? OH! Right right right_. English. Sorry, kid. Forgot about that for a minute there. Cementoss doesn't speak any english, see? He's one of the teachers here and he's mostly in charge of the grounds, for obvious reasons." Mic explained, gesturing to the man across the room.

Before Danny could ask what he meant, Cementoss knelt down and put his oversized hands against the flat, grey floor. A deep rumble and the sound of grinding rocks filled the air. Then thick, stone pillars shot up from the floor, reaching for the sky. The pillars towered above the pair with the lowest tier being at least six feet off the ground and the highest rising up almost fifty feet, just barely missing the roof. Within seconds the inside of the gym had been transformed from a flat empty plane into a rugged cliff-like range. Danny stared as the roaring and grinding ceased and only the light pitter of loose pebbles tumbling down the ledges, lingered in the room.

"Holy shit!" Danny breathed.

"Yep." Mic mused.

Danny chuckled as Cementoss nodded in his direction from across the room. "So, you guys can just build whatever you need for any kind of class or exercise, just like that?" Danny asked, snapping his fingers.

Mic grinned. "Pretty much. The teachers we have here are often some of the highest ranked heros, but the main priority is finding instructors who can make things run as smoothly as possible for the school. A top notch nurse with healing abilities is going to save a lot more time, money and bad publicity, than having kids rushed to the ER when training gets a little out of hand. And, I may not be the absolute, highest ranked hero, but I can entertain a crowd of angsty teenagers with ease. Not to mention, I'm a pretty rockin' English teacher, if I do say so myself."

"Makes sense." Danny said, stepping forward to touch one of the pillars closest to the edge of the gym. "Never really thought about super powers being used for things like this, but if everyone in this world has quirks, then there's probably plenty of folks who use them for their day-jobs."

"Now you're getting it." Mic said.

"Not everyone has a quirk though."

Danny whipped around. Aizawa was walking towards the pair, looking just as exhausted as he had when they'd left for the mall. Danny was beginning to wonder if the poor guy _ever_ looked rested.

"Shouta! Lookin' ten years younger already." Mic said, giving the dark haired man a grin and a thumbs-up. Aizawa didn't respond, instead turning to Danny.

"Enjoying the tour?"

"Now that we've gotten to the cool stuff, yeah." Danny said.

Aizawa raised a brow and cast his eyes over to Mic. "You've been at this for three hours and still haven't finished the tour?"

A sheepish grin pulled at Mic's lips. "Well, the tour only really started about half an hour ago, see?"

Aizawa's eyes narrowed. "And the rest of the time?"

"I may have taken the kid to get some clothes and stuff. Only the essentials, I assure you."

" _You took him out in public?_ " Aizawa said, glaring at the blonde.

" _I told you I could handle him. Besides, you and I both know which of us is more suited to dropping 30,000 yen on a whim. I was trying to help out. Clearly you needed it._ "

Aizawa groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. " _Next time, just do as I ask. Especially when it comes to the kid._ "

" _You're welcome._ " Mic grumbled.

Danny watched the exchange, unable to understand what was being said, but knowing that it had to do with him. "Uh, Mr. Aizawa." he started. "Look I'm the one who asked to go to the mall. I wanted some fresh air, you know. Get a look around. See a little more of the city than just the inside of a building for once."

Aizawa watched him for a long moment. "If you think lying to me is going to win you any points, you're sorely mistaken." He glanced up at Mic and then turned and began walking towards the door. "I'll take the rest of the tour from here."

Guessing that was his cue to follow, Danny offered a half-smile to Mic, who grinned and shrugged.

"I appreciate the attempted save, kid, but he is right. Honesty will get you a lot farther in Shouta's book. Don't worry though. He should get over it eventually.."

"I hope so. Thanks again, for the clothes and stuff."

"No prob, Danny boy. If ya need anything while you're here, gimme a call. I put my number in your phone, so feel free to shoot me a text anytime."

"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks." Danny said, waving over his shoulder as he jogged to catch up with Aizawa.

Once he had caught up, Aizawa shot the teen a glare from the corner of his eye. "Your phone?"

Danny shrunk back a bit from the glare. Even without his erasing powers activated, he was certain Aizawa had some sort of intimidation ability or something. Those dark eyes, glaring at him like that, made him want to crawl under a rock.

"Uh, yeah. Mic said I'd need one, even if I was only gonna be here for a few days." he explained. "I tried to talk him out of it, honest, but he was kinda set on the idea."

Aizawa mumbled something in japanese that Danny didn't recognize. "Fine. At least you'll be preoccupied for a while. Now that I don't have to take you to get any supplies, my priorities are mostly going to focus on my students. You'll be coming up here to the school with me most days so I can keep an eye on you."

"Most days?" Danny asked.

Aizawa sighed. "If you can prove to me that you're not going to burn my apartment down or bolt the first chance you get, I might be inclined to give you a bit of leeway. I know being stuck up here with nothing to do can get more than a little annoying."

"Really? That's… that's cool. So, uh, what did you have in mind?" Danny said, trying to hide his eagerness and failing miserably.

"Be yourself. Relax. Show me who you are, as a person. Give me a reason to trust that you mean what you say. Then, if I believe you're capable and trustworthy enough, I'll consider adding you to my class' summer training camp trip."

"Training camp? Sounds more like work than a reward." Danny grumbled.

"You'd prefer to be under police surveillance while I'm away?" Aizawa asked.

Danny's shoulders sagged. "I guess not. And, I mean, it would be cool to see what other powe- er... quirks other people have. How old are most of your students?"

"Around fifteen or sixteen, for the most part."

"Ok, so they're all my age, or close enough to it." Danny surmised. He couldn't help but smile at the thought of meeting, not only other super powered people, but kids his age. Peers, who were working to become heroes in their own right. Even if he didn't quite agree with this whole hero-society thing entirely, the idea was very alluring. "I guess it would be nice to get out and stretch my legs more. And if I went on this trip, you'd let me use my powers?"

Aizawa nodded. "I'd treat you the same as I would any of my other students. You'd be pushed and expected to participate in the training like the rest of them."

"No special treatment, huh?"

"I don't play favorites." Aizawa said, simply.

The two continued their walk out onto an open field. Some areas were marked off for familiar activities like a long jump and a relay track, though the track seemed longer than the one around the football field at home. There were a number of other marked off areas, but he wasn't sure what their purpose was.

"I'll arrange a meeting with the principal and the other teachers for later this week." Aizawa started. "We still need to gauge your abilities and really see what you're capable of. If Nezu approves, this will be your testing ground." he said, gesturing to the field before them.

Danny's brow furrowed. "Wait, you want me to show off _all_ my powers?"

"That's the idea."

"Yeah, well, I'm not sure if it's a _good_ idea."

Aizawa's eyes narrowed, but he didn't speak.

Danny sighed. "Look I don't mind at all, honestly I'm kind of itching to let off some steam, but… I'm not exactly the best at controlling all of my powers and there's at least one that I really try not to use around other people and definitely not near large buildings, if I can help it."

"This school is built to help train and work with all kinds of quirks. Regardless of how many abilities you have, I'm sure we can handle whatever you can dish out." Aizawa said. He watched Danny's reaction and the hint of concern that flickered behind the teen's eyes. "That said, if it'd put you at ease to have someone else there who can subdue you without the… 'sight effects' that my quirk seems to cause, I can have that arranged."

Danny took another look at the open field and the foresting of trees that lay beyond it. "Alright. Can't guarantee you'll have such a nice view by the end of it though." he said, gesturing to the treeline.

"You seem confident that you're abilities can cause significant damage." Aizawa stated, crossing his arms.

Danny looked up at the man. "Hey, it's not like I go out of my way to break shit." Danny defended. "I just… I'm still figuring out how all this works."

"You mean quirks?"

"I mean _my_ powers." Danny admitted.

Aizawa nodded. "Nezu mentioned you telling him that you'd only had your abilities for just over a year. I take it there's no mentor figure where you come from to teach you how to better use your powers?"

A dry, humorless laugh hissed through Danny's teeth. "No one I'm willing to consider."

Aizawa waited for an explanation, but Danny didn't elaborate. Thus far Danny had been a relatively open book when it came to his powers and the world he'd come from, but this was clearly a topic he was not going to divulge if he didn't have to. After all he wasn't going to be here much longer. There was no need for Aizawa to know about his enemies, relationships and responsibilities back home. If it wasn't important, he wasn't going to get into it.

Aizawa sighed. "Fine then. Come on, there's more school to see." he said, turning and walking towards a cluster of buildings.

"Wiat, there's more?" Danny asked, jogging to catch up to the teacher and looking at the buildings looming ahead. "One of those is yours too?"

"They're all ours."

Danny blinked and looked from the city block that they were nearing to the expressionless man. "What do you mean all of them? The first two buildings there? I mean, they just look like office buildings. Are they for the general classes you mentioned?"

Aizawa glanced down at Danny then nodded in the direction of the buildings. "Look again. Notice anything out of place?"

Danny's brow furrowed and his eyes flitted from building to building as they drew nearer. "I mean, it's hard to tell, cuz it's the middle of the day, but… the lights aren't on are they? Are all the buildings empty?"

Aizawa nodded. "Keep going."

Danny's gaze drifted down the buildings, looking for other hints. Some were newer than others, but they all looked real. Real walls, real windows, all the things normal buildings were made of. Then again, after what he'd seen that cement guy do in the gym, he figured making a 6 story building wasn't too far out of their reach. A wall seperated the city area from the field they'd just been at and they were approaching a large gate. Then he noticed it.

The road.

On the other side of the gate was a black, paved road that looked like any other road. Except this one ended right under the gate, stopping dead at the wall's boundary. No dirt path. No gravel drive. Just green grass.

"The whole city is fake?" Danny asked. As they neared the gate.

"It's hardly large enough to be considered a village, much less a city." Aizawa said, walking over to the left side of the gate and typing into a touchscreen. "It is, however, a five block radius of buildings made to accurately simulate a metroplex." The screen beeped and the gate opened. Aizawa walked inside and Danny followed, eyeing the eerily quiet structures as they passed.

"This'd be one hell of a place to play hide-and-seek." Danny said.

"This is a training ground." Aizawa stated. "There are others designed to mimic urban housing developments, industrial plants, warehouses and shipyards. Teachers can use these areas to setup and simulate almost any kind of life-like simulation for the students to react to. Forcing the students to consider their environment in a fight encourages them to be more aware of their surroundings and more creative with the use of their quirks."

"Yeah, and I bet not having any civilians around makes it a lot easier for everyone to experiment and try new things without worrying about hurting anyone or causing too much damage."

"We still strongly encourage the students to keep collateral to a minimum." Aizawa corrected. "Even with Cementoss, it still costs money to build these environments."

"I guess that makes sense too. Still," Danny stopped in the middle of an intersection, eyeing the empty cars and silent towers, "it's better than learning and failing with real consequences hanging over your head."

It would've been amazing if Danny had been able to learn how to use his powers like the students here did. He couldn't help but think of all the mistakes that could have been avoided if he'd been able to practice more in his early days. Even now, with his powers getting stronger, he was dealing with even bigger disasters when he screwed up. He couldn't help the little pulse of envy in the back of his mind. So many things could have gone differently back home if he'd just been more prepared and had a good teacher.

The thought of Vlad's offer from when they first met, bubbled to the forefront of his mind and Danny shuddered. Then again, better to make a few mistakes here and there, than to learn everything and turn out like… that. A teacher like Aizawa though… That would have been cool.

He turned his attention back to the older man, who was staring at him. Danny faltered. How long had he been doing that? Then again, how long had Danny been standing there, staring at nothing.

Aizawa turned and started walking down an adjacent street. Danny followed.

"It's been a long day. Why don't we run to the store, grab some food and head back to the apartment." Aizawa said, leading Danny between buildings and through back alleys. "Once we make dinner… hm." Aizawa hummed to himself. "Don't have much in the way of entertainment. I don't usually host guests. Might be something on TV you can watch. Not sure how much you'll get out of it with the language barrier though."

Danny shrugged. "Honestly, if you've got wi-fi I'm cool with fiddling with the phone for the evening. Still wanna figure out how it works and maybe do a bit of my own research, ya know? See if I can get an idea how this society works and maybe blend in a little better. I mean, if I'm gonna be stuck here for a few days, then it's in my best interest to at least be aware of current events and the law and stuff, right?"

"You don't have to sell the idea to me, kid. Just stick to the rules I gave you and whatever you do after that is up to you." Aizawa led them down a street and the two came to another gate exiting the fake city. "You're going to stick out by virtue of being an American teen who doesn't know any Japanese, regardless of what you can find online. But if it'll give you something to do that doesn't bother me, then I don't care what you decide to do with your time."

"Gee, thanks." Danny deadpanned. "The enthusiasm is much appreciated."

Aizawa didn't respond.

Danny followed Aizawa through the school and back to Present Mic's classroom. The obnoxiously loud teacher was nowhere to be seen, but the shopping bags he and Danny had accumulated were piled up next to the door, waiting to be whisked away once more. Aizawa turned to Danny.

"Well? They're your clothes, aren't they?" he said, gesturing to the bags.

Danny sighed and started slipping his arms into the handles of the bags. He managed to get three on each arm and Aizawa, thankfully, scooped up the last two bags.

"So, are we gonna catch a cab or something?" Danny asked as they began to make their way through the halls.

Aizawa peered at the kid over his shoulder. "All those powers and you can't carry a few bags of clothes for five blocks? I'm fairly certain I heard you mention enhanced strength at one point or another."

Danny readjusted the bags on one arm. "Yeah, in my ghost form. When I'm human like this, I don't have access to all of my powers. If you let me go-ghost I could carry all this, and you and fly us to your place in like five minutes."

"Go-ghost? You mean, transform into your other self?"

"Yeah. That's what I call it at least." Danny explained.

Aizawa rolled his eyes. "Regardless, the answer is no. You're not supposed to be using your powers at all, much less for something so frivolous. It's not a necessity. Besides, you did say earlier you needed to blow off a little steam. It's probably not what you were expecting, but I'm betting it will tire you out all the same."

Danny could almost hear a smile in Aizawa's voice as he spoke. There was a certain smugness, however mild, in his response.

"Great." Danny deadpanned.

The two trudged down the halls, down the elevator and slipped out one of the side entrances of the school to avoid the press. Aizawa did allow Danny to go invisible again, just in case there were any reporters lurking about, though he had to keep hold of the teacher's sleeve like before. Once they were about a block away, Danny popped back into sight and the pair continued their march home. Danny was lagging behind Aizawa by more than a few steps. The bags weren't really a struggle to manage, but they were slowing him down more than he had hoped.

As Danny passed by a small side street, a chill ran up his spine and he felt a familiar gasp of air leave his lips. He froze. For a moment he just stood there, shocked by how welcoming the sensation was. It'd only been a few days, but he'd become so accustomed to his ghost sense going off multiple times a day, that feeling after it had been absent for so long… it was oddly comforting.

Almost instinctively his eyes flickered green and he stared down the street. At first he saw nothing. Just a line of houses on either side of the road, with little overhangs above the doors and trash bins by the steps. Then a flicker caught his attention by the window of one of the houses. He tried to focus on it, but it was as if the image was being distorted. It was a bipedal figure, that he was sure of, but it was small. Like a child.

He took a step towards the house and instantly a hand was on his arm.

Danny looked up and Aizawa's dark eyes stared back at his glowing green ones.

"Can you hear me?" He said in a low tone.

Danny blinked and nodded. "Yeah I can hear you just fine, I-" he looked back down the street, but the figure was gone. "Shit."

"What?" Aizawa asked, not letting go of Danny's arm.

"I saw- something."

"That's descriptive."

Danny rolled his eyes, forcing them to flicker back to blue. "My ghost sense went off and I saw a figure down the street by that house." he explained, pointing to the place he'd been staring at.

Aizawa glanced in the same direction, but quickly turned his attention back to Danny.

"I'm not lying." Danny said.

"I never said you were." Aizawa said. "Could have just been someone else's quirk reacting weirdly with yours."

"Maybe… but I don't think so."

Aizawa stared at him for a few moments longer before finally letting go. "Doesn't matter now. Let's just get back to the apartment. I'll call and have something delivered for dinner tonight." Danny expected the teacher to turn and start walking, but he didn't. He just stood there, as if waiting for Danny to make a move.

That little flicker of distrust was back again. Not that it had ever left, really.

Danny gave the side street one more look, then sighed and started walking in the direction they had been heading. Aizawa fell into step beside him. As the street fell further and further away, the feeling of unease settled more deeply in Danny's mind.

"This kind of thing happen a lot where you're from?" Aizawa aked.

Danny shrugged. "A couple times a day. Usually while I'm at school."

"So you're school is haunted."

Danny chuckled. "Sort of. I mean, it was for a while, but I took care of that. If you asked everyone else though, they'd say 'Danny Phantom' haunts the school."

Aizawa raised a brow.

"What?"

"Well, do you?" he asked.

"What? No! They only say that because that's where I get seen fighting off other ghosts a lot of the time. It's kinda hard to focus on studying for an algebra test when you know that there's something evil lurking in the halls. But it's not like I'm trying to scare anyone… I mean, unless it's Dash, but that doesn't count. He always starts things and I just quietly get a mild dose of revenge from time to time."

"So you don't haunt the school, you just spend a large portion of your time there, defend it from unwanted intruders and lash out at other students as you see fit." Aizawa glanced down at him. "Did I leave anything out."

Danny blinked. "Well… I mean, when you put it like that…"

"Don't get all worked up, kid. Isn't the term, 'haunt' used pretty casually in english anyways? I mean, I could say UA is one of my regular haunts, yeah? "

"Well, yeah… sort of. It's just got a heavier meaning when you live in the most haunted city in America." Danny said. Then he realized something. "Hang on, was that a joke a minute ago? You have a sense of humor?"

"When I have time." Aizawa said with a shrug. A faint smile pulled at the corner of his lips.

They managed to make it to the apartment complex without incident, though Aizawa was making a point to stay within arms reach of Danny the rest of the way. Despite his seemingly more relaxed appearance, he was still working. Danny tried not to think about it too much. Besides, if he keeled over from the weight of the bags, which seemed to grow heavier and heavier with each step, at least he'd be caught before smacking face first into the cement.

They made it halfway up the stairs, when the chill returned. This time Danny saw the faint blue glow of breath in front of his face. He looked up and saw Aizawa watching him.

"What did you just do?"

"Ghost sense." Danny muttered under his breath. "Not really something I have control over."

"So that means there's a ghost nearby?"

"Yes, that's generally what a ghost sense implies." Danny hissed. His eyes flicked to that glowing green once more and he began to look around.

He didn't have to look long.

At the top of the stairs, only a few feet away from Aizawa, stood the same, jittering figure. Now that it was closer though, he could make out some details. It was a child, first off, and judging by the dress and long hair, a girl. She had whispy blue lights for eyes and no matter how hard he tried to focus, she remained fuzzy and jittery. Like an old black and white TV with a bad connection, viewed by someone who had forgotten their glasses.

Aizawa turned and look in the same direction, but just as quickly looked back at Danny.

"What are you seeing?"

Danny's brow furrowed and he pointedly gestured at the girl. "What do you mean she's right-" he stopped and realization dawned on him. "Right. She's invisible. You can't see her…" he sighed. "There's a girl at the top of the stairs. I can't really see her clearly though."

"Nothing to do with your eyesight, I assume. Is this normal?"

"It's not something I deal with often back home, but I've got a theory." Danny said. "If I'm right, she can't hurt you. You should be able to get inside just fine."

"I'm not letting you out of my sight." Aizawa said.

"I didn't expect you to. But I'm gonna need to be a little more creative with how I get in." Danny glanced up at Aizawa. "I'll float up and phase through the wall. I'll stay visible the whole time, I promise."

"After the stunt you pulled with the reporter earlier-"

"Yes, I know. But this is a bit more delicate, ok?" Danny hissed. "If she is what I think she is, then I need to make sure she doesn't touch me. Best way I can do that is keep a few feet away from her, 'kay?"

Aizawa thought over the proposal for a moment, likely weighing how much of what Danny was saying was actually true or not. After all, he clearly couldn't see the girl. All he had to go on was the word of a kid who'd already been pushing the boundaries he'd set at the start of all this. Now he was expected to trust him with a situation he couldn't see with his own eyes.

The older man took a breath and sighed. "Fine. If you try to run though, I'll drop you without a second thought."

"Yeah, yeah. Just get up and inside. I'll be there in a minute or two."

Aizawa started back up the steps, slipping past the girl. She seemed to step out of his way, though her eyes never stopped staring at Danny. Once Aizawa unlocked the door and had it open, Danny glanced around to make sure no one was watching and transformed. Instantly the bags on his arms felt lighter and he easily drifted up so that he was level with the second floor. Both the girl and Aizawa were watching him, like a pair of hawks.

"It's ok." he hummed, holding up his hands for the girl to see. "I'm just gonna go inside now. No need to do anything creepy or drastic."

As he floated toward the door, the girl's gaze followed him. He phased through part of a wall and the door frame and managed to land and set his bags down as Aizawa closed the door. Danny let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.

"Do you think she'll stay out?" Aizawa asked.

Danny rolled his eyes. "With my luck? I'm betting she'llHOLYSHIZ-" He had just turned to walk towards the couch, when the girl appeared just a few inches in front of him. Danny stumbled back.

"I take it she's in the apartment?"

"What was your first clue?"

The girl didn't move towards them. She wasn't really doing much of anything actually. Just, staring.

"What does she want?" Aizawa asked.

"Beats me." Danny shrugged. "I've only encountered one of these before and there wasn't a language barrier to deal with back then. Then again… she is just a little girl. " Danny ran a hand through his white hair and grumbled a bit to himself. "Here goes something, at least."

He took a step towards the girl and knelt down so that he was at her eye level. She watched him and he could have sworn he saw a flicker of worry on her expressionless face. He attempted to smile and waved his hand. "Hello." he said.

She stood very still for a moment, as if having to take time to absorb his impressive greeting. Something, that was probably supposed to be a mouth, opened slightly and closed, but no sound came. When Danny didn't react, she raised a hand and touched her own face. The flicker of worry returned.

"Well, that sucks." Danny said.

"What now?"

"A few things, I think." Danny said, not taking his eyes off the spirit. "Firstly, I think my hunch was right. She's not a ghost, not really."

"Then what is this thing that's now in my apartment that only you can see?" Aizawa said. Danny could hear his patience growing thin.

"The way my mom explains it, Ghosts are spirits of people who have, for one reason or another, become tethered to the world after death. But not all dead people turn into ghosts." he explained. "Most go straight on to… well, wherever it is people go after death, but some linger. A ghost only forms if a lingering spirit has enough power, enough energy, to remain on earth. I told you about the Ghost Zone, right? Well, that place acts like a massive power source for spirits. They're naturally drawn to it, like a magnet."

"And you're the only thing in this world that's been to the Ghost Zone." Aizawa added, putting the pieces together quicker than Danny had expected.

Danny nodded. "That's what I've been thinking. This is a spirit who's recently died. Not enough power to stay, but something's keeping her here, regardless."

"Will she cross over on her own then?"

"With me here, acting like a beacon? I doubt it." Danny said. He hummed to himself and wrinkled his brows together. "I wonder though." Slowly, tentatively, Danny held out a hand towards the girl. She stepped back, flickering more violently. Scared.

"No. No. It's ok." Danny soothed. "It's ok. I'm not gonna hurt you. Look, see?" Slowly he let a little green ball of ectoplasm form in the palm of his hand. He let it grow to the size of a golf ball and watched as the girl became mesmerized.

"What are you doing?" Aizawa asked.

"Giving her what she wants."

Slowly the girl took a few tiny steps towards Danny and reached out for the green, glowing ball. The instant she touched it, the flickering ceased and her form became solid and crisp all at once. She gasped and behind him, Danny could hear Aizawa mutter something in Japanese. Danny glanced at him over his shoulder.

"You thought I was crazy, didn't you?"

"No... I thought you might be lying." Aizawa corrected, eyes now fixed on the semi-translucent form of the girl.

She was young, maybe seven or eight years old at most. Dark hair cascaded behind her and seemed to move as if under water. What Danny had thought was a dress he could now see was a school uniform, wrinkled but otherwise undamaged. Overall she looked like a normal, little girl… then he noticed her neck. Deep, dark bruises encircled her neck and Danny's shoulders slumped.

"Oh no…"

The girl opened her mouth to speak, but again no sound came.

"Why can't I hear her?" Aizawa asked.

"It's not you." Danny said, "I can't hear her ether. Let me try..." he fed more power into the ectoplasm and it grew larger. The girl eagerly put her other hand on it as well and her eyes lit up, neon blue.

Then she spoke. It was very distinctly Japanese, but Danny hadn't heard these words before.

Aizawa was by his side in an instant, knelt down just like Danny and looking at the girl. He spoke and her gaze finally left Danny and turned to the dark haired teacher.

"Whatever you do, don't make her mad." Danny added, just as Aizawa had opened his mouth to speak. "Ghosts, spirits, they're all emotion and energy. I'm feeding her enough power to be present and speak, but if she wants to, she can do some serious damage. Do not get her upset. Don't bring up the fact that she's dead."

"Look at her neck." Aizawa hissed. "This child didn't die of natural causes."

"I can see that. But I'm warning you, don't go there." Danny said, trying to keep his voice calm but stern. "Trust me, please. I know what I'm talking about here. I've got exactly one thing I'm even remotely good at and this is it."

Aizawa looked between the two for a moment, weighing his options. Then he went back to speaking in Japanese to the girl. She eagerly replied and then Aizawa said something else. This time she had to think for a while, her nose wrinkling up in thought before she finally spoke. Danny watched as the two continued back and forth like this for a few minutes. The girl had moments where it looked like she was struggling to remember things, but Aizawa kept her talking. Danny even saw the grumpy old man smile for her, just once and only slightly. Then the girl turned her vivid, blue eyes back to Danny and said something. Aizawa responded and that got her attention, but now there was a distinct feeling that they were both talking about Danny. That was alright though. At this point he was starting to get used to being casually left out of conversations happening only a few feet in front of him.

"What's her name?" Danny asked.

Aizawa stopped mid-sentance and glanced between Danny and the girl. He said something to her and her face wrinkled up as she struggled to think of an answer. Finally she mumbled something and Aizawa quickly responded, his voice comforting and gentler than Danny expected.

"She can't remember." he said.

Danny sighed. "This is gonna be a long night." Slowly, he stood up, making sure to keep his hand within the girl's reach and started to float towards the living room. The girl followed, like a little lost puppy following whoever had the treats. Danny settled himself onto the couch and the girl came to rest, cross-legged on the floor, still holding onto the little green orb in Danny's hand.

"If she can't recall her name and we don't want to risk getting her upset," Danny said, "the best thing we can do is just relax and keep her company."

"For how long?" Aizawa asked as he made his way into the kitchen.

Danny shrugged. "No idea. If she's scared she'll keep close to whatever makes her feel powerful, aka, battery boy here." he said, gesturing to himself. "If she gets bored, hopefully she'll leave and go back to meandering around the streets. With any luck she'll get drawn over to… wherever it is spirits are supposed to go."

"And those are our only options?" Aizawa pulled out a can of cat food and started dividing it onto paper plates.

"Well, we agreed we're not going to pester her for more information due to the risk of dealing with a vengeful, mildly radioactive, ghost child wreaking havoc on your kitchen. And I'm certainly not going to try and run her off. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that she's had a pretty rough day already. If I had any of my parent's tech I could contain her and release her into the Ghost Zone once I get home… but if I'm being honest that's not really the best option for her."

"Fair enough." Aizawa said, making his way to the back porch with the cat food. "Then the question becomes, how long can you keep feeding her that energy?"

Danny looked down his arm to the orb, which was almost the size of a marble at that point. He poured more energy back into it and the orb grew back to the size of a baseball. The girl smiled and looked back up at him. He automatically returned the grin with one of his own. "I'll be fine. Promise."

Aizawa didn't seem satisfied by his answer, but he didn't press the issue either. He stepped outside and was eagerly greeted by a pack of cats. The girl watched the cats on the porch, but made no move away from Danny's side. And that's how the three of them remained. Aizawa, tending to not-his-cats, the dead girl, sitting quietly and observing the unfamiliar room, and Danny, resting on the couch and frequently feeding the orb of ectoplasm in his hand. It was hardly what any of them had wanted to do with the remainder of their evening, but there were worse ways to spend the day.


	8. Chapter 8

When Danny opened his eyes the first thing he noticed was how dark it was. He could have sworn the sun was still up just a few minutes ago. He moved to sit up on his elbows, only to be struck by a wave of vertigo and slump back onto the couch. That was odd, he thought. His head felt foggy and even the slightest movement made him dizzy. After taking a moment to compose himself, he managed to sit up against the armrest. His eyes squeezed shut and a hand went to his head, trying to keep it steady.

"Was wondering when you'd wake up." Aizawa said, stepping out of his bedroom.

Danny groaned. "I only closed my eyes for a moment."

"More like five hours, kid."

Danny's brow furrowed and he looked up at Aizawa. "What? No, it couldn't be that long I was just-"

The memories of what had happened earlier that day, flooded back to him. The school. The tour. The walk home. The girl.

"Where's-" Danny whipped his head around, instantly regretting it when another wave of vertigo nearly sent him tumbling to the floor. Still he made an effort to scan the room. His eyes glowed green, but still he saw nothing. "Where'd she go?"

Aizawa shrugged. "I don't know. You passed out while I was still on the patio, but the energy source you were providing was still there."

"The ectoplasm?" Danny confirmed, eyes flickering back to blue.

Aizawa nodded. "She remained visible to me while it remained, but once she had absorbed the last of it she started to fade. I don't know what happened after that." He paused, watching Danny from across the room. "How do you feel?"

"Dizzy, actually. Feels like I just ran a mile while dehydrated."

"I thought something like that might happen." Aizawa said. He made his way into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the pantry. "Using your quirk like that, consistently over a long period of time will drain even the most well trained quirk users."

"Well yeah, I expected to be running a little low, but not… this." Danny said, tenderly massaging his temples.

Aizawa walked back to the living room and handed Danny the water. The teen quickly emptied the bottle and sighed.

"Normally it takes a lot more than a few ecto-bursts to drain my energy like this. I don't know why I feel so…"

"Weak?"

Danny shrugged. "Basically."

"Maybe your abilities function differently in this world than they do in your's." Aizawa suggested, crossing his arms and leaning back against the wall. "You mentioned last night that spirits gain energy from the ghost world, right."

"Ghost Zone." Danny corrected. "But I'm only half ghost. Normally I just recharge on my own and 'pop' back to normal." He snapped his fingers, to emphasize his point on the 'pop'.

"But have you ever spent multiple days away from the Ghost Zone?" Aizawa asked. "The way you talk, makes it sound like you travel there often. You said the portal there is in your family home, right?"

Danny paused and let the idea sink in. "Never really thought about it like that before. I mean, I took a cross-country trip with my friends and I was fine, but we were kind of messing with radioactive, ghostly artifacts that whole time, so… I wouldn't really count that one as being away from ghost energy." He tried to scan his thoughts for any time he would have spent away from the portal and not interacting with other, juiced up ghosts, but none came to mind. His family's attempt to go on that ghost-free RV trip was the closest thing, but being constantly pestered by Young Blood kind of made that trip a moot point as well. "Wow. Two years since the accident and I don't think I've spent more than a day or two, completely away from ghost stuff."

"Then that could have something to do with it. You said you weren't born with your abilities, you gained them inorganically. Maybe being separated from the source of your powers is robbing you of your ability to recharge."

Danny gave a dry chuckle. "I hope not. Between you and half the anti-ghost gadgets I've had to deal with over the years, I know being cut off from my ghost powers is absolutely not a good thing. That said, it sounds more logical than half the things my parents come up with, so it's probably actually got some merit." The thought was darker than he expected, though he made an effort to not let it sink in too deep. He wouldn't be here long enough to see that happen, if all went to plan.

"Well, we don't know anything for sure. No use getting carried away on a theory." Aizawa said. "For now, we'll keep an eye on you and if your condition worsens we can always take you up to the hospital."

Danny was about to ask what Aizawa expected a bunch of doctors to do about something like this, but he didn't get the chance. His stomach made an all too audible growl, effectively ending that conversation before it could begin.

A smirk pulled at Aizawa's lips. "I guess you did miss dinner, huh? I know a place that might still be open. I'll see if they can deliver. Maybe getting some food into you will help with the dizziness." He pulled out his phone and started typing. "Chicken or Pork?"

Danny gave him a sheepish look and shrugged. "Both?"

The smirk returned once more. "Fine. If there's leftovers you'll at least have something for lunch tomorrow."

Within an hour the two were curled up on the sofa, watching some local gameshow and stuffing their faces. Danny hadn't a clue what was being said, but the over-the-top reactions of the contestants and the host easily made up for the lack of communication. Aizawa seemed to be more disappointed than amused for the most part, though Danny caught sight of a hesitant smile more than once, when a rather pompous contestant repeatedly got smacked by a giant, disembodied, rubber hand. He may not have been the type to wear his emotions on his sleeve, but Danny was starting to see that Aizawa had more to him than just the tired, stone-faced facade he wore every day. Danny recalled the way he'd spoken with the ghost girl earlier that night. Even if he didn't understand the language he could hear the patience in the older man's tone and the gentle way he spoke to her. Even though he clearly had wanted to get an answer for the obvious wrong that had been committed, he did what was best for the kid at the time.

The memory settled in his mind and stole away Danny's previously ravenous hunger. He stared at the remains of his dinner.

"You think she's really gone?" Danny asked, his voice quiet under the jubilation of the television. Aizawa didn't answer right away. Danny thought he might not have heard him.

"I don't know. You're the one with the ghost sense. You tell me."

Of course Danny hadn't sensed her since he'd woken up, but still… His eyes shown green and he glanced around the room again. Nothing he couldn't already see with his human eyes stood out to him. He sighed and relaxed, fixing blue eyes back onto his food.

"Far as I can tell, she's gone." Danny said, taking a less-than-eager bite. "Hope she moves on soon. This isn't a life I'd wish on my worst enemy. And a lot of my worst enemies are ghosts already."

Aizawa hummed in acknowledgement, his face unreadable as usual. They quickly slipped back into casual silence as the TV shouted and jeered.

Danny only managed to last another half hour before he was slumped over the arm of the couch, snoring softly. Aizawa cut off the TV, cleaned up the remnants of their meal, of which barely a mouthful was left, and made his way towards his own room. As he passed through the living room, a chill passed through his leg, like a cool breeze. He stopped and turned, just catching the wisp of frost escaping Danny's lips as the boy shuddered and curled further into the couch cushions.

" _I told you."_ Aizawa said, his voice calm and soft. _"You can't stay here."_

The image of the girl flickered into view, glowing faintly in the dark room, one hand resting on Danny's shoulder. She looked up at Aizawa and the fear that had been so clear on her face before was hardly noticeable. Instead she wore a look of determination.

" _You can't keep feeding off of him like that."_

" _I'm not staying. I promise."_ she said, her voice clear, but quiet. _"You wanted to know my name… earlier. I'd forgotten…"_

" _That's alright. It's not-"_

" _Nakamura Hina."_ she said. _"I wanted to tell you, before I forgot again."_

Aizawa stared at her for a moment, then his features softened and he nodded. _"Thank you for coming to tell me."_

" _I'm going to go now."_ she said. _"I want to find my brother."_

" _He may not be able to see you."_ Aizawa warned, his voice steadier than even he expected it to be.

" _I know."_ She looked at Danny's sleeping form and then back at Aizawa. _"Thank you for talking to me."_

" _You're very welcome, Miss Nakamura."_

The girl smiled. Nothing big or jubilant, just a small, content smile. Then she took her hand off of Danny and began to walk towards the window, fading away with each step. By the time she reached out to touch the glass, she was nothing but a memory.


	9. Chapter 9

The next day, Danny awoke to something pushing on his shoulder. His eyes fluttered open and he saw Aizawa hovering over him. He still felt dizzy and it took a moment for last night's events to come back to him.

"Sorry, kid, but I'm not about to let you sleep the whole day away." Aizawa said, pulling back his hand.

Danny groaned and sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Whatimizit?" he mumbled.

"Almost noon. Come on. We'll go grab lunch and get some fresh air." Aizawa stood and strode off to his own room.

Danny sighed, stretched his arms over his head and wilted against his pillow. The couch felt so unusually comfortable. That whole, sleeping the day away idea didn't sound to him like that bad of an option. A few more minutes wouldn't hurt. He let himself shimmy back under the blanket and was just beginning to drift back into an unconscious fog.

"Don't go back to sleep!" Aizawa shouted from the other room.

Danny's eyes shot open and he groaned. "Fiiiiiiine!"

He swung his legs out from the warmth of the covers and forced himself to stand. He swayed a bit, lifting a hand to his head, but managed to keep his balance. Likely the after effects of the thing with the ghost girl the night before, though he didn't expect it to linger this long. Still, he was already feeling better than he had the first time he woke, so he decided it was nothing to be too concerned about. Sluggishly, he rummaged through a bag of clothes on the floor, picked out something that at least looked more presentable than the wrinkled mess he'd fallen asleep in, and trudged his way into the guest bathroom.

A quick shower and some much needed preening later, Danny came striding into the living room. The dizziness from earlier was already fading. Admittedly, getting nice and clean was more refreshing than he'd expected it to be. He'd gotten so used to only showering to get the sweat, dust and ectoplasm off that he hadn't really thought about needing to since he hadn't been in any 'real fights' lately. His hair certainly looked happy with the decision at least. The space shirt he'd picked out from the mall fit comfortably, though the pants felt a bit tight around his ankles. Still, not a bad getup to say the least. Sam would have approved of the dark colors overall.

A pang of longing squeezed at his heart and made him pause.

He missed her. He missed all of them. One by one, thoughts of his friends and family began to surface in his mind. Longing turned to worry and a lump started to form at the back of his throat. No. He couldn't afford to lose his cool now. He pushed it back, forcing the emotions down along with all the memories and concerns and tried to focus on the present.

Getting the portal gun back was key. Protocol or not, waiting for this world's government or whoever it was to make a decision, was time wasted. He needed to get home and he needed to do so quickly. Once he had a plan and an opportunity, all these worries and concerns would be a thing of the past.

"Ready to go?" Aizawa called from the other room.

"Yeah, just let me grab my phone real quick." Danny composed himself and swept out of the bathroom. He quickly pocketed his new phone, unable to shake the feeling that he was forgetting something. It still felt wrong, leaving the house without a Fenton Thermos… but it wouldn't last. He just had to keep this up for a little longer. Just a little longer.

The pair exited the apartment and made their way from the quiet residential area, towards the hustle and bustle a few blocks down the road. They passed by the cafe from the day before and continued on at a reasonable pace. Danny found his eyes wandering to the various signs and storefronts, trying to guess at what they sold. Occasionally he snickered at an odd cartoon mascot or found himself completely confused, but for the most part, it just seemed like a bunch of restaurants.

"Have you ever had gyudon?" Aizawa asked.

"Uhh… what?"

"Gyudon. It translates to beef bowl, though there's more to it than just beef." Aizawa explained. "It's a common fast food here."

Danny shrugged. "I'd be cool with trying it out."

Aizawa nodded and led them to a store with a bright orange sign. Inside the pair were quickly seated and Danny let Aizawa order for him once again. It had worked out pleasantly enough the last time, after all. When his plate was placed in front of him however, he couldn't help but look a little quizzically and the wrinkly, brown mess hiding under a garnish of pink ginger. Aizawa was already digging in while Danny hesitantly poked at his food with his chopsticks.

"Don't be rude." Aizawa said. "Just try it."

Danny did as he was told, intentionally picking a smaller piece of shriveled meat to taste. Of course, like the day before, the food ended up being quite good, much to his surprise. Whatever seasonings they used really gave the meat a lot of flavor. In no time, Danny was eagerly scarfing down the entire dish with gusto. Even if this trip had been an unplanned and unwanted affair, at least the food was good. Aizawa smiled and sipped at his tea.

"Ok, so," Danny spoke between bites, "what kind of desserts do you guys have here?"

"You're gonna burn through my entire paycheck at this rate, kid." Aizawa said, though his tone was hardly accusatory. "If you really want something sweet, there's a French shop a couple blocks over that has some decent pastries and such. Their espresso isn't bad either."

"Not very familiar with French food, though I do like their fries." Danny said.

Danny was fairly certain Aizawa was having to hold back from rolling his eyes at that. Danny just grinned and finished off the last few bites of his food. They ended up forgoing the French stop and instead headed down the road to a park. The trees shaded a simple path that wound through the green, summer grass and the sound of a fountain up ahead could be heard easily, since there weren't very many people around. Danny was surprised at first, since Aizawa didn't exactly seem like the type to go for a leisurely stroll in broad daylight, but his intentions didn't take long to make themselves known. Not even halfway into the park, a chubby, calico cat padded out from under a bench and eagerly nuzzled up against Aizawa's leg.

"You sure you quirk doesn't have anything to do with attracting cats?" Danny asked. "No catnip sweat or radiating cat-friendly energy or whatever? 'Cause this is getting a little creepy at this point."

Aizawa leaned down and scratched behind the cat's ears for a moment before speaking. "I've lived in this part of town for a long time. Most of the local cats have visited my porch for food or know by now that I'm a friendly face." He pulled one hand out of his pocket and held out a couple dry kibbles to the stray.

"More like they know you always keep food on you." Danny deadpanned.

"Only when I'm off the clock." Aizawa corrected. He gave the cat a final, affectionate pat and continued down the path. "So I take it you don't have any pets back home then?"

"What, because I think it's weird to keep pet food on hand? Pretty sure that's weird in most circles, to be honest."

"No. You just don't seem all that interested in animals in general." Aizawa explained. "Hard to imagine someone being raised around a family pet and still being so stand-off-ish around them."

Danny shrugged. "No. Well… Ok, technically no, since he's not really mine. Plus he's a ghost dog so… yeah. But, like I said before, I just really don't like cats. Hard to wanna be affectionate towards something when you're used to seeing it lounging in the lap of an egocentric nut-job who regularly fluctuates between wanting to kill you and wanting to own you." The words were out of his mouth before he could really stop them. He winced and kept his eyes glued to the sidewalk, hoping Aizawa wouldn't comment on it.

"So, animals can become ghosts too then?" the older man asked.

"Yeah, I guess." Danny said, relaxing a bit. "Cujo was originally a guard dog for this lab outside of town, but when they upgraded to a more technological security system… well… they didn't need the dogs anymore." Danny paused, but Aizawa didn't speak so he kept going, eager to bury the other half of his earlier confession. "His spirit was obsessed with getting back an old dog doy that was still stored at the lab and since my parent's portal was already up and running he had plenty of access to enough energy to become a true ghost and start haunting the place. Took almost a week for my friends and I to figure out what he wanted, but even after he got his toy back he still stuck around." A little smile pulled at the corner of Danny's lips. "Sam thinks that he got attached to me and didn't want to leave me behind. So… yeah. Technically not my dog, but no one else is gonna take care of him… not that they could really. He's not too fond of strangers."

Aizawa nodded and led them out of the other side of the park. "Are you worried about him?"

"Who, Cujo? Nah!" Danny said, waving a hand through the air. "He's a ghost, it's not like he needs to be let out or fed. Besides, he isn't around all the time. Most of the time he's off in the Ghost Zone doing… whatever the heck is he does. I usually see him every other week or so, once he's dug his way out and has started bothering the locals. Barking at the mailman. Chasing cats up trees. You know, normal dog stuff… though I'm pretty sure normal dogs can't fly and turn invisible."

"You've never tried to train him?" Aizawa asked.

"Well I mean, he's already trained actually. Like I said, he was a guard dog originally, but now he's a ghost. All emotion and raw energy." Danny sighed. "Whether it's people or animals or whatever the heck else ends up in the Ghost Zone, all ghosts have a certain uncontrollable energy about them. Most have some sort of obsession, but aside from that they all tend to act based on what they want at any given moment." he shrugged. "Cujo's no different. He may be trained to do one thing, but if he wants to do something else, then he'll do that instead. I'm just really lucky that more often than not, he wants to do what I tell him and get a belly rub instead of the other things his dog brain is thinking about."

"I see." Aizawa said, looking over at Danny for a moment. "And you're not worried that he'll get out of hand while you're away?"

Danny's frowned. "It's not like I'm going to be here long. And besides, Sam and Tucker know how to handle him."

Aizawa nodded. "Allies in your ghost hunting duties?"

"Friends." Danny said, curtly. Before the conversation could be allowed to venture further into this topic, Danny made a point to pull out the phone Present Mic had given him. "Hey, do you think we could drop by the Police Station today and ask how things are going with my case?"

"We've been over this. They said an agent would call once your device has been cleared." Aizawa said, his tone returning to its usual, sternness.

"It can't hurt to just drop by and ask." Danny suggested.

"I'm not going to waste the police's time because you're being impatient."

"Look, I just want-"

"I know what you want and you are going to have to wait." Aizawa said, turning to face Danny completely. "There's more going on here than just you trying to get back home. The police cannot put their other investigations on hold for you and I will not, in good faith, tell them that they should do so. You made a point to say that you thought your friends could handle one of the common ghost issues you are used to dealing with back home. Were you speaking honestly?"

"Yeah, but-"

"Then you need to let this situation run its course." Aizawa said. "You likely won't have to wait much longer, but you need to be patient regardless."

Danny glared up at Aizawa, fists clenched at his sides. Aizawa just stared right back, never taking those dark eyes off of Danny.

"We should head back to the apartment." he said after a few seconds, though he made no move to turn his back on Danny.

Danny let out a breath and forced himself to relax, though his hands remained curled into loose fists. "Fine." he hissed, taking the initiative and starting in the direction they'd been heading.

Aizawa kept pace right alongside him, subtly leading them back towards the apartment buildings. Danny could almost feel the guy's eyes burning a hole into the back of his skull. He knew he wasn't going to say 'yes' to the idea. Why'd he even have to bring it up in the first place? All it did was make Aizawa suspicious of him. No doubt any good will he'd managed to garner was just stripped away. Ugh! This was starting to give him a headache. One minute he felt like he could just chill and talk to Aizawa, the next he felt like he had to watch every word that came out of his mouth. Then again… that little comment about his friends wasn't the first time he'd used Danny's own words against him. Great. Note to self, stop giving your jailer material to be used against you.

Danny sighed.

This was going to be a rough few days, he just knew it.

The rest of the day passed by without any further incidents. Danny managed to calm down by the time they'd made it back to the apartment and ended up spending most of the afternoon fiddling with the phone. Just getting comfortable with the interface was enough of a struggle, much less navigating the websites and apps themselves.

Aizawa didn't let Danny out of his sight for most of the day, lurking in the kitchen or lounging on the back porch. Always keeping the teen in his line of sight. Danny rarely caught him watching, but the intent was clear. He wasn't trusted and he wasn't going to be left alone any time soon.

The next day started much the same way, though thankfully without the headache to accompany the rude awakening. Danny could instantly feel the difference in his energy levels and was glad to feel back to normal again. Still, it gave him second thoughts about breaking into the station to get the portal gun. If he was this tired out by just sharing his ghost energy with another spirit, then there was no telling how drained he would be by using his powers in earnest. He'd have to be careful how much power he used for sure. Nothing big or flashy. Just the basic abilities needed to get in, get the gun and get out.

Of course, none of that mattered if he couldn't get away from his keeper.

"I can't keep taking you out to eat every day." Aizawa said as Danny exited the bathroom, still running a hand through his bedhead. "So, you're coming with me to go get some groceries today. 'Bout time I stocked the pantry anyways." A sour face was firmly settled onto the older man's features.

"Yeah, if you're so opposed to eating at restaurants to begin with, why aren't you better stocked?" Danny asked.

Aizawa's eyes narrowed, though not at Danny directly. "Grocery shopping is hardly a favorite activity. Although with your incident and my involvement having been in the news lately, I'm not exactly keen on being in public any more than I have to be."

Danny's brow furrowed. "I mean, it's not like you've been stopped on the street so far. I don't even think anyone noticed us while we were out yesterday."

"Walking around the streets is one thing." Aizawa said, grabbing his keys and heading for the door. "Strolling down aisles in a cooped up building is another."

"Well, can't you have groceries delivered?"

"Not worth the money when I can just as easily do it myself." The pair stepped out of the apartment and Danny waited for Aizawa to lock up. "Besides, with any luck I'm just blowing this whole thing out of proportion and this trip will go off without a hitch."

"How lucky are you as a general rule?" Danny asked.

"Not very."

Sure enough, they'd only made it halfway down the produce aisle before Danny noticed a couple pointing at them and whispering to each other. He did his best to ignore them, but they were just the first. One guy even had the boldness to walk up and ask Aizawa something. Danny hadn't a clue what he said, but Aizawa's curt response and no-nonsense glare had the guy mumbling what Danny thought had to be an apology and quickly returning to his own cart.

Even if Danny found the interaction and Aizawa's ability to keep unwanted passersby at a distance, he could tell the trip was growing more and more stressful for the older man as they continued. Danny tried to help where he could, but not being able to read the labels and not really knowing what was needed to begin with left his options slim to none. Not to mention the looks they garnered when Danny started speaking in english. So, the teen resigned himself to keeping quiet and just following along while Aizawa grew more and more agitated by the curious locals. They managed to get three days worth of essentials and trudge up to the checkout without any real incident occurring though so that was a plus.

A little rack of keychains caught Danny's attention while they were waiting in the checkout line. He absently looked over them, chuckling at some of the more ridiculous looking designs. Cartoon mascots or heroes with crazy quirks he couldn't be sure, but the overgrown limbs and wacky faces were certainly amusing to say the very least. He turned the rack and his smile faltered. Among the rows of simple, plastic key chains, was a green, blobby shape with little black beads for eyes and a painted "O" for a mouth.

It wasn't exactly like the logo his dad so loved to stick onto everything Fenton Works made, but the similarity was startling to say the least. Danny could recall very distinctly when his dad had first come up with the design. He'd been doodling little ghosts for weeks and even let Danny help out once he'd finished his chores. Danny couldn't have been more than six at the time. He could clearly recall being so proud that his dad let him color in the ghost designs and he stayed inside the lines the entire time. When Jack finally settled on a design he and Danny excitedly started trying to draw it on everything, though they both quickly realized that neither of them were too good at redrawing the design exactly the same each time. Mom, of course, came to the rescue, uploading the drawing into their old computer and printing it back out onto sticker paper. She very quickly regretted the decision, because Jack and Danny spent the next four hours slapping little ghost stickers on anything and everything in the house. Maddie had to instate a rule that the 'logo' could only be put on Fenton Works creations and only one per invention. That was Danny's favorite part of helping his parents in the lab when he was little. Eventually dad had upgraded the design a bit and had some more official looking decals made and shipped in various sizes, which were the ones so lovingly emblazoned on the latest Fenton tech.

Even before the incident it had been years since Danny had taken an interest in his parent's work. Things had changed so much since then. After the accident, even moreso. A part of him wished he could go back to that happier time. When ghost attacks and worrying about his own life wasn't even a consideration, much less a daily occurrence. When his parents work involved putting stickers on machines that didn't work, instead of designing machines that could rip him to pieces.

"Danny."

Danny blinked and looked up. Aizawa was watching him as the cashier rang up the last few items they'd collected. His face was a mask of neutrality, though his eyes didn't waver. No telling how long Danny had been standing there staring at a cheap key chain like an idiot.

"Something wrong?" Aizawa asked, nodding at the key chain in Danny's hand. When had he picked it up…?

"Oh… no. Sorry." Danny said. His voice hitched and he silently cursed himself for letting his mind wander again. He cleared his throat and quickly put the chain back on its hook. "Just looked familiar, that's all." He obediently strode back over to Aizawa's side, avoiding meeting his gaze. No doubt Aizawa noticed. He noticed everything.

Thankfully though, he chose not to comment on it.

Instead he paid and led them out of the store, handing over half the bags for Danny to carry. They trudged back to the apartment in silence as Danny fought to wrestle back control of his thoughts from his emotions. He was not going to break just because of some stupid key chain and he certainly wasn't going to lose his cool in front of Aizawa. He was fine. Everything was going to be fine. He had a plan. He was going to get back home in no time. Nothing to worry about. He'd only been gone for… what… four days? The world wasn't going to end just because he took a vacation for a few days. Yeah… yeah that was a good way to think of it. Just a short vacation. One week, tops. He could relax here in Japan and then go back home and everything would be fine.

He sniffed and rubbed the back of his hand across his nose, mentally pushing his emotions back into the corner of his mind. A corner that was quickly growing more and more crowded the longer he was away. That was okay though. He could handle this. It was only temporary.

"How does roasted vegetables and rice sound?" Aizawa asked as they made their way up the stairs.

Danny shrugged. "Fine by me." he said, glad that his voice didn't crack this time.

"Why don't you give me a hand with cooking tonight." It was more of a statement than a question, but Aizawa still waited for an answer as he unlocked the door.

"Yeah, sure. Guess it's the least I can do since you're letting me stay at your place, after all."

Aizawa nodded and led them inside. They quickly put away the food they didn't need and Danny was tasked with cleaning and chopping vegetables.

"Really?" he asked. "You're giving the untrustworthy, potential criminal a knife?"

Aizawa looked over his shoulder at Danny and smirked. "I'm not too concerned." He held out a big, chopping knife and Danny took it hesitantly. Almost immediately Aizawa's hand was on his, tightening his grip. "It's not gonna burn you, kid. You need to have a good grip on the handle or it'll slip. The last thing you want is a knife clattering around and falling on your foot or worse." He let go and Danny made a point to keep a tighter hold on the handle.

"You sure you don't wanna be in charge of this part?" he asked, turning back to the cutting board and carrots.

"You really think chopping vegetables is too difficult for you?" Aizawa asked. He was measuring out cups of rice and pouring them into a strainer in the sink.

"The chopping part isn't my main concern, though I'm not exactly used to being on this end of a knife." he said, carefully starting to cut the carrot into less-than-even chunks. "I just have a reputation for 'dropping' things back home."

"Like the lentils from the other day?" he asked, thankfully not commenting on the 'wrong end of a knife' thing.

Danny felt his cheeks warm. "Yeah... yeah that's it. It doesn't happen as much anymore, but when I first got my powers my hands would turn intangible at the worst times. I ended up 'dropping' so many of the school's glass beakers and tubes that I'm officially not allowed near any glass objects."

Aizawa nodded. "Most likely a stress response. You were worried about waking me up the other day while you were rummaging around for food, right?"

Danny had to think about it for a moment before answering. "Yeah… yeah I guess so. Huh. Never really thought of it like that."

Aizawa shrugged and went about rinsing the rice. "It's not at all uncommon for quirks to be harder to control when a person is upset or stressed. As someone with a non-combative quirk, it helps to be aware of these kinds of… irregularities."

"You mean weaknesses?" Danny corrected.

"I wasn't going to say that."

"It's accurate though." Danny said. "I used to have almost zero control over whether or not I could stay in my ghost form and I got by ass kicked repeatedly for it. So I made a point to work on it and get better control over morphing between forms." he shrugged, scooping up the carrot bits into a bowl and grabbing some broccoli crowns. "The intangibility thing just kind of went away on its own for the most part, so I never really tried to correct it."

"And there's your first mistake." Aizawa said, pouring the rice into the cooker. "You have to find the root of your quirk's weakness and put in the effort to combat that. Otherwise it's going to crop up again when you least expect it."

"Like with the lentils."

"Exactly." Aizawa closed the lid on the rice cooker and turned to see how Danny's vegetable chopping was coming along. He picked a rather lopsided, large chunk of carrot out of the bowl and raised a silent, questioning brow at the teen.

"Like I said, I don't usually help out with things like this." Danny said.

Aizawa shrugged and dropped the carrot chunk back into the bowl. "It's still edible. No harm done. You're going at a snail's pace, though." He retrieved another cutting board from a drawer and deftly grabbed a knife, a twin to the blade Danny had, from the block on the countertop. Danny watched as he made quick work of a zucchini, making thin, rectangular slices and dropped them into the bowl.

"Do I want to know where you got so good with a knife?" Danny asked.

Aizawa chuckled. "My mom cooked most of our meals when I was growing up. She always enlisted me or my sibling's help in the kitchen. Said we needed to know how to take care of ourselves and cook our own food."

"Oh…"

"Not the answer you were expecting?" Aizawa asked.

"I mean, you've got the whole ninja-jumpsuit-look already." Danny defended. "Kinda figured you'd be skilled at hand-to-hand combat and fighting with knives and ninja stars and stuff."

Aizawa's hands stilled and he closed his eyes, like he was trying to process what Danny had just said. Then he let out a breath and went back to work. "While I do know how to use Shuriken and small blades in a battle, that's hardly relevant to being able to use a kitchen knife to cook with."

Danny gave a sheepish smile. "I guess that's fair."

With the two of them working together they managed to finish making lunch without issue or injury. After they ate and packed away the leftovers Danny plopped down onto the couch and spent the next few hours messing with the phone again. It still didn't feel right to call it his, since he planned on leaving it here when he left. Still, he was very glad to have it so that he could pass the time. It'd be significantly easier to use if he didn't have to keep using the translation program on it, but he really didn't see the point in learning Japanese. He doubted his family would want to take a trip to Japan, much less be able to afford it.

Aizawa ended up grabbing his laptop and working at the kitchen table for most of the afternoon. On what, Danny didn't know but he seemed just as engrossed in his work as Danny was in trying to shoot the aliens on the screen with what looked like fish. Before Danny knew it, the sun had set and a quite 'mew' sounded from the back porch, breaking the pair out of their thoughts. Aizawa went through his usual routine, feeding the strays and Danny even managed to pet one without getting scratched. He was pleasantly surprised at that, honestly. He wasn't about to go home and get a kitten himself, but he was starting to see the appeal, if nothing else.

They finished off the leftovers from earlier for dinner while watching another one of those game shows on TV. This one seemed to be more trivia based, yet the sudden cuts to contestants falling through the floor into a vat of white goop, made Danny laugh all the same. Aizawa cleaned up the mess from dinner and, just like the last few nights, vanished into his room with a 'good night'.

This time, however, Danny found it much harder to fall asleep. He wasn't exhausted from medical tests or excessive use of his powers. He wasn't really tired at all, honestly. So he ended up tossing and turning on the couch-bed late into the night. Left to his own thoughts, his mind began to drift home and the lump from earlier settled back in his throat. He'd be home soon. He knew he would. But it still hurt to be so far away and not know for sure if everything and everyone was safe. He knew he'd regret letting his mind wander, but he let it happen all the same. He let the worry and fear seep into his skin and curled up quietly under the covers. No one was there to see his facade crack and if he kept quiet, no one would have to know.

Sleep finally took hold of him late into the night, bringing with it bittersweet memories and a growing discomfort. This was not going to be an easy night to get through.


	10. Chapter 10

Danny was roused, not by a hand on his shoulder, but the scent of… well… not bacon exactly, but something close, for sure. He cracked his eyes open, wincing at how dry and crusty they felt, and lifted a hand to rub the sleep from them. Light was streaming in through the window. He glanced up at the clock on the opposite wall, one of the few things that didn't change between cultures. 1:45. Odd… He thought Aizawa would have woken him up earlier than this. Not that he wasn't grateful for the extra few hours. Honestly, he still felt like another hour or two wouldn't be unappreciated.

Memories of tossing and turning for hours trying to get to sleep last night, rustled around in his brain. Then his wandering thoughts and memories from the night before came back to him. Worry for family. Concern for his home. Fear that he would fail. It had all piled on in the dark and loneliness of the night and now all those thoughts were rushing back at him. He raised a hand and felt the stale remnants of salt around his eyes and the side of his face. Had Aizawa known? His cheeks burned, partly out of anger, mostly from embarrassment.

He hastily got to his feet, grabbed a change of clothes and swept into the bathroom, not daring to look in the kitchen as he passed. He let himself indulge in a slightly longer shower this time, sitting under the near-scalding stream and fervently scrubbing his face along with the rest of his skin. When he finally turned off the tap and stepped out, the whole bathroom was thick with steam. He dried off, clicked the overhead fan on, stepped into his clothes, another pair of dark pants and a red t-shirt, and ran a comb through his still damp hair. Not much more to be done with his hair really, but that was nothing new. Still, he stood there at the sink, staring in the mirror and trying to find something else to do. No real point in brushing his teeth if he was about to go out and eat anyways. He could still smell the not-bacon, lingering on the other side of the door. His stomach growled. No use delaying this any further, he thought.

With a sigh, Danny pulled open the door and stepped out into the hall.

"Trying to turn my home into a sauna?" Aizawa asked when he returned to the living room. The man sat at the coffee table, already halfway through a bowl of rice, eggs and some kind of meat which had to have been what smelled so good. Another bowl of the same sat waiting across from him.

"Sorry about that." Danny mumbled as he took his place on the floor across from Aizawa. He eagerly dug into his breakfast. It wasn't nearly as good as the breakfast from the other day had been, but he was hungry and it was better than anything he could have made. Nothing to complain about at least, not that he would.

Aizawa waved his hand. "It's not that big a deal. Just try not to use all the hot water next time." The two sat quietly eating for a few minutes. Danny could make out the sound of the dishwasher running in the kitchen. "Rough night?"

Danny paused, a mouthful of food hovering a few inches above the bowl. He waited, trying to think of how to respond. He shrugged, taking the bite and giving himself a few moments to chew before replying in earnest. "Nightmares." he lied. "Kinda comes with the whole ghosts, hauntings and life threatening dangers lifestyle. I doubt that kinda stuff is a rarity here, yeah?"

Aizawa shrugged. "Even people who aren't in the line of hero work are allowed to have nightmares. Some dream about failing to save a life, while others dream about failing to get into the school of their dreams. At the end of the day it's all just fear. And fears are just a part of being human, after all." His eyes met Danny's. Danny quickly turned his gaze to his food.

"Yeah well… it's not a big deal." he said, quickly stuffing another bite of rice into his mouth.

"Alright. I won't pry." Aizawa said. He finished up his own food and took his bowl to the kitchen. "You're lucky I was able to get someone to cover for me today. I was originally going to have to go into the school today to go over some things with Vlad regarding the summer camp." Aizawa started, his tone casual and conversational.

Danny choked.

He coughed and hacked and worked to clear his throat, then took a big gulp of water before speaking. "Vlad?!" he asked, his voice harsh. "How in the fucking Hell do you know Vlad?"

Aizawa stared at the teen, clearly trying to piece together what he had said and Danny's response. Danny just waited, shoulders tense. His eyes were locked onto Aizawa and he could feel his ghost energy jittering underneath his skin, ready to cocoon him in invisibility and bolt in an instant if he didn't like what he heard. Aizawa must have noticed the sudden tension in the room, because he slowly set down the dishes he'd been cleaning and made a point to keep his face as calm and neutral as possible.

"There is a fellow teacher at the school." he started, his voice calm and steady. "Sekijiro Kan. He's known as the Blood Hero: Vlad King. As far as I'm aware you haven't had the opportunity to meet him as of yet." He paused, letting this information hang in the air for a moment before opening his mouth to continue.

"What's he look like?" Danny interrupted.

Aizawa's brows furrowed slightly, but he answered in that same calm tone. "Well over six foot tall. A very muscular build. Short, white, spiked hair. A slight underbite with tusk-like teeth that usually stick out from the corners of his lips. He usually wears a stern expression." Danny must have relaxed a bit, because Aizawa's guard seemed to fade slightly in response. "Sekijiro's hero name has to do with his quirk. He has the ability to freely manipulate his own blood. The name is a reference to a well known fictional vampire character in our world."

Danny listened, intently absorbing this information while trying to calm his racing heart. This guy clearly didn't sound at all like the Vlad he knew, but damn if the name alone hadn't set off every warning bell in his brain. He forced himself to breathe, though he knew there was little he could do about the tension in his shoulders. Once he was wound up like this, it was hard for him to calm back down again. Whether that was from one-too-many surprise attacks or the countless times he'd been beaten by letting his guard down too soon, he wasn't sure.

"And he's Japanese?" Danny asked.

Aizawa nodded. "I'm fairly certain he's never left the country, though I would have to ask to be sure." He watched Danny for a long moment before continuing. "I highly doubt my co-worker has anything to do with the Vlad from your reality."

A dry chuckle turned into a cough and Danny had to clear his throat once more. "Yeah." he hissed. "Yeah, that… that makes sense."

He watched as Aizawa rounded the counter and took a few steps in his direction. He was wary, almost like he was approaching a wild animal, Danny thought. He stopped a few feet away and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. It was meant to look casual, but Danny knew he could react in an instant if he wanted to. They stared at each other, for a bit. Danny glanced down at what remained of his breakfast.

"Sorry… I think I lost my appetite." He mumbled, sliding the bowl away.

Aizawa nodded, but didn't move from his place. "You gonna tell me what all that was about?" He finally asked.

Danny sighed. "Just… this one villain I have to deal with back home, alright? It's no big deal."

"You know, if you use the same phrase every time you lie, you're going to have a hard time fooling anyone about anything."

Danny looked up then. Aizawa's eyes were locked onto him. He wasn't going to let this one slide by like he had everything else. He was starting to think Aizawa just hadn't noticed or didn't care about the comments he made about his life back home. Clearly he'd been paying more attention than Danny had hoped. And, of course, this little slip had to be about Vlad.

"Ugh." Danny groaned. "Look, it's not really any of your business, alright. I'm not lying. He is a villain I have to deal with pretty often." he hesitated. "He's the only other person like me. Half ghost. And he's absolutely insane and obsessive and it is not at all out of the realm of believability that he would figure out where I am, find a way to get here, and worm his way into your school to creepily stalk me from afar while he plots on how he can use all of this to his advantage to get me on 'his side'." Danny let out a breath. "He's fucked up and I've had enough experience dealing with him to know that anything he's involved in isn't to be trusted. That answer your question?"

Aizawa narrowed his eyes. "I get that you don't like talking about your life back home, but you seem to be unaware of the fact that just talking to you is like tip-toe-ing through a mine field. True, this instance was an outlier, but I hardly have an idea of who you are as a person, much less what kind of triggers or reactions you're prone to. I'd much rather avoid getting you upset, than having to deal with you losing your cool."

Danny rolled his eyes. "I'm not gonna lose my cool unless there's actually something to lose my cool over. And I don't have 'triggers'. I'm not some nut-case, who's gonna blow up at one wrong move."

"You don't have to be mentally unstable to have psychological triggers." Aizawa stated. "All I'm saying is that, I don't think it's healthy for you to keep suppressing your thoughts and emotions while you're staying here. Keeping up mental barriers around certain people is one thing, but keeping yourself walled off for days at a time can have adverse effects on anyone's mental health."

"Oh and you're some sort of expert in psychology now?" Danny scoffed.

"No, but I teach highschoolers for a living. Students who want to make careers out of being heroes, fighting super villains, saving lives and putting their own on the line for the sake of others, while still having families and lives outside of their work someday. Having at least a passing understanding of how the mind works and giving my students tools to better handle the stresses they'll face is just part of the job as far as I'm concerned."

Danny fell silent at that. He didn't know what to say, honestly. At this point he was afraid if he kept talking everything buzzing around in his head was just going to come pouring out of him like a flood. Whatever Aizawa thought was healthy or not, Danny wasn't prepared to deal with that right now. Last night had been bad enough. He didn't want to fall apart completely. Even if Aizawa wasn't really a stranger anymore, he still wasn't a friend. Or… at least Danny didn't think he should be.

Aizawa pushed off from the wall and walked over to scoop up the bowl Danny had set aside. He went back to the kitchen and set to work finishing the dishes in silence. Once breakfast, late lunch really, was cleaned up he made his way back to the living room and settled down onto the couch. He was about to say something when his phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen and his mood changed instantly. Annoyance settled onto his brow.

"What? More paperwork at the school?" Danny asked.

"One of my _coworkers_ got held up with hero work and is backing out of something I asked him to handle for me." He very nearly hissed on the word, coworker and Danny could feel the tension from across the table. He didn't really get why setting aside schoolwork for hero work was a bad thing, but he knew better than to ask, at least right now. Aizawa sighed and looked at his watch. "So much for having someone handle my duties today. I need to go up to the school. The students who reserved the pool are going to need supervision or someone to kick them out." He mumbled something else under his breath, while texting back.

Danny raised a brow. "So… I'm gonna get to meet your class then? Or are you gonna hide me away in one of the classrooms with Mic?"

Aizawa didn't say anything at first, still typing into his phone. A few moments passed before he finally spoke.

"Neither." Aizawa said, standing up. "I'm going to the school by myself. I won't be gone for more than a half hour, I should think. You can keep yourself occupied until then." His tone was casual, but his eyes were boring into Danny's own, daring him to say something.

Danny stared. The world seemed to stop for a moment as his thoughts struggled to catch up to speed. After the conversation that had just occurred, he didn't really expect to get any time to himself for a while, let alone… this. After all, he'd been waiting for an opportunity to be left alone, really truly alone, and… here it was.

His mind raced to make sense of what this meant and his plans to get the portal gun back flared to life again. Had he really let himself forget about that? He'd barely been awake for two hours and already his priorities were all over the place. He didn't have time to contemplate all this existential crap though. He needed to say something and make a decision here and now. On one had, he could do exactly as Aizawa suggested and just chill here at the apartment, get his thoughts in order and wait for another opportunity to come. No doubt proving that he could be left alone and then nothing happening would do wonders for Aizawa's trust in him. On the other hand however, there was no guarantee that he'd get a chance like this again. The 'camp thing' was in a few days, right? And during that time he'd be with Aizawa and his class in god-knows-where for who-knew-how-long. Was he really ready to wait for weeks to have another shot at getting his portal gun back? Was he okay with putting Aizawa's trust on the line after all that he had done for him? Then again, if Danny could get his plan in motion and succeed in getting home, then whether or not Aizawa approved didn't really matter, did it?

Danny shrugged, keeping his expression as relaxed as possible. "I guess. Worst case scenario, I spend the whole time playing phone games." He gave a sort of half smile, still letting his uncertain feelings from earlier linger on his face. Aizawa stared at him for a long time, his face unreadable. Danny started to fidget under his gaze. "Are you sure you're ok with this?" he asked.

The silence felt heavy between them and only made it harder for Danny to keep from fidgeting. He stood and waited for Aizawa to make a move. To anyone else they would have looked like an odd pair. A teenager and a middle aged man, standing barely a foot apart, not breaking eye contact. Yet there was a tension in the air around them. A distinct sense that if either made a wrong move, the other would react with unforgiving force and speed.

And then, all at once, the tension faded. It wasn't gone entirely, but with the next few words, it lessened dramatically.

"It's only for a few minutes." Aizawa said. With that the older man swept out of the living area and into his bedroom. He didn't speak as he went about gathering his usual things, keys, wallet, etc. He seemed calm, if a bit annoyed at his coworker.

Danny didn't have time to worry about who would risk Aizawa's wrath, though. His mind was racing. This was the opportunity, but he needed a plan now. A real plan. He still wasn't quite sure where he was in the city or how he was supposed to get to the police station. One jaunt around a park and a grocery store did not make for an accurate understanding of the whole city. That would be his first priority. After that… well… he just had to break into the evidence room, he guessed. An evidence room that, no doubt, was guarded by all manner of quirk-proof tech and precautions. ...yeah. Just… just bust in there. Piece of cake.

"You remember the rules?" Aizawa asked as he stepped back into the living space.

"Don't leave the apartment without you." Danny said, counting off his fingers while leaning against one of the walls. "Don't talk to anyone. I'm gonna assume don't answer the door is included with that one. And don't take your hospitality for granted, more or less."

Aizawa turned and glared at him. "Don't betray my trust." he corrected.

Aizawa's eyes met Danny's for only a few moments before he turned and made for the door. Danny forced himself to turn away and walk over to the couch, flop down and take the phone out of his pocket.

"I'll be back in half an hour." Aizawa said, from the doorway.

Danny nodded, not taking his eyes off the phone screen. "Alright. See you then."

Aizawa hesitated for just a moment, then closed the door and went on his way. Danny froze, listening as the footsteps outside faded further down the stairs. He turned his attention back to the phone as ideas raced through his head. If he bolted now and Aizawa turned out to be waiting for him, this was going to south VERY quickly. However, if this whole thing was legit and Aizawa really was going to be gone for a while, then this might be his only chance to get the portal gun back.

He stared at the phone in his hand for a moment before realizing what he had at his fingertips, translated into readable english and waiting for him to type something in. After a moment of mentally cursing at himself, Danny got to work. First he looked up how to get to the police station, realized there were multiple stations in the city and ended up having to figure out where it was based on the mall's location. Where that particular mall was though, that was another matter entirely. By the time he'd rummaged through the bags to find a list of stores and cross referenced which mall had all of those stores, he'd spent about 15 minutes just trying to figure out where he needed to go.

Once he had the route memorized, he tossed the phone behind the couch, shifted into his ghost form and went intangible and invisible. He needed to get gone before Aizawa even started to head back. The guy wasn't stupid. He'd be able to figure out where Danny was headed the instant he realized he was gone, which meant the clock was ticking.

Danny phased through the building and sped off, navigating by following the roads below. He nearly passed by the station at first, but thankfully he recognized the building's entrance from when he and Mic had driven by the day before. He grinned. This was it. He'd made it.

...Now what?

He floated, unseen, a few stories above the building, absently circling it as his mind rummaged through half-baked ideas. He groaned. Doing nothing wasn't getting him anywhere and time was not a resource he could afford to waste. He decided to just pick a wall and phase through it. The North side seemed as solid a wall as any of the others. He reached out a hand and tentatively touched the outer wall. Then he pushed his arm through, slowly. No shocks. No burns. Nothing solid that he couldn't phase through. Good. That was better than he'd hoped at least. Once he was convinced he could make it all the way, he slipped through the wall.

The room he stood in looked like one of those interrogation rooms from the crime dramas his mom liked to watch on occasion, though these ones were stark white, not dark gray. It still had the basic interrogation staples. One-way mirror. Plain table. A couple of basic chairs. No windows. One door. Danny had to admit though, that the white walls really added an unsettling feeling to the mostly empty room.

He phased through the door and found himself at the end of a hallway with doors on either side every few feet. One door opened and a person with a cat head in a blue uniform stepped out. They walked down the hall towards Danny, then stepped into another room to Danny's left, completely unaware of the teen's presence. Good. His powers weren't muted or turned off or anything.

Maybe this would be easier than he thought.

Now he just had to find the evidence locker, or whatever it was called, grab his stuff and get out of there. He started to move down the hall, glancing at the first door he came to. Intuitively, his eyes wandered to the plaque next to the door. It had a number and some kanji engraved into the metallic surface.

Shit.

Of course everything would be written in kanji. This was Japan after all. He thought about trying to translate through his phone for a brief moment, before recalling that he'd intentionally left it back at Aizawa's place so he couldn't be tracked. He bit his tongue to keep from groaning and looked up and down the hall once more. There was no way around it. He'd have to check each room.

Dejectedly, Danny phased his head into the first room. Another interrogation room. He stepped back into the hall, walked down to the next door and peeked inside. Observation room that looked into the first room he'd come in through. And so he went. Phasing his head through door after door, peeking inside to see what lay beyond before passing onto the next one. Most of the rooms in that hall were interrogation rooms, though one was a sort of surveillance hub, with monitors showing video footage of the entire building. Danny skimmed his eyes over the screens, just making sure he wasn't showing up on any of their cameras. Once he was satisfied that his infiltration was still under wraps, he slipped out of the hall and turned onto a wide corridor. More rooms and more branching hallways greeted him.

Twenty minutes after starting his search and he still hadn't found anything that looked like evidence storage. He'd made it through a whole other hall before moving to a more productive method and just flying through the rooms. He'd scoured the entire first floor this way before diving to see what lay below. The floor, however, was not as normal as it appeared and he was lucky his invisibility stayed up after he roughly rebounded off of the tiles and went tumbling into an occupied office.

"Ugh! What the-?" He grumbled, before clapping a hand over his mouth and looking all around.

The one man sitting behind his desk looked up from his computer and scanned the room. His eyes moved right through Danny and after a moment he shrugged and went back to his typing. Danny stood, phased back through the wall and let out a slow breath. Even if he was invisible to the eye, the ear was another matter altogether. If he couldn't keep his mouth shut, this entire plan was going to go out the window before Aizawa even showed up.

Carefully this time, Danny leaned down and tried to phase through the floor. No luck. He swept through the first floor until he came to a stairway that led downwards. He needed only to peer inside to realize what was preventing him entry. At the bottom of the stairs was a metal-detector-like archway and a hall of barred jail cells. More than likely the entire lower level was reserved for criminals, so it made sense that the walls would be quirk-proof. Danny didn't stick around to confirm his theory though.

Instead he floated upwards and phased onto the second floor. More halls and offices awaited and his search looked like it was going to continue for another half hour. That was, until he found another wall he couldn't phase through. He walked along the wall, keeping a hand on the stubbornly solid surface and rounded the corner. A heavy-looking, metal door was set deeply into the wall. No handle. No lock. Just a scanner of some sort, set into the wall next to the door itself.

Just as Danny reached out to try and phase through the door, a beep and a click sounded and the door swung out towards him. He stumbled back, holding his breath to keep from cursing as a woman stepped out and started briskly walking down the hall he'd just come from. He glanced at her for only a moment before his attention turned back to the door. It was already swinging closed. No time to question it. Danny leapt forward and slipped inside, his foot just grazing the door's edge as it latched shut with another click and a beep.

He only got a glimpse of shelves and boxes before he turned and tried to phase back through the door. As expected though, his hands refused to pass through the surface. He side stepped towards the connecting wall, only to get the same result. Not good. He followed the walls around the entire room, but all of them were ghost proof. Or, rather, quirk proof, he guessed. Very, not good.

He let out a shaky breath. The slight tremble of his shoulders unsettled him and his breaths were coming quicker than they had before. How long had he been breathing so fast?

"Calm down." he whispered to himself. He already knew he was alone from his circuit around the walls, but he still didn't want to make too much noise. "It's ok. You made it where you needed to be. You're fine. Someone else will eventually come in to grab something and you can sneak out then. Just gotta find the gun before then." He forced himself to take a few deep breaths, but his shoulders remained tense and strained.

There was nothing for it though.

Determined to ignore the tension rolling off of his own body, Danny floated forward and started peering into boxes. Any paper files he quickly overlooked, aiming only for boxes and crates that looked big enough to hold the portal gun's pieces. It took him a good ten minutes to skim through the first row of shelves with nothing to show for it. There were, maybe 15 rows of shelves in the room. This was taking too long. He was running out of time. Aizawa was likely to have come home by now. Which meant it was only a matter of time bef-

The lights in the evidence room cut out. Danny froze. A moment passed in the darkness and the quiet before a very loud alarm droned in bursts every few seconds. A couple of red lights on each wall came to life, bathing the room in a warm glow. He could easily see around the room, but not nearly as clearly as he had been able to before.

"Shit!" Danny hissed.

His movements became frantic. He made no move to carefully slide the drawers and boxes back into place on the shelves. No, his time had just been reduced considerably. If he had to guess, this was some sort of lockdown procedure. Any moment now the halls would be swarming with SWAT teams, or whatever they had in this universe. He shouldn't be surprised really. This kinda shit always happened back home. Never an easy mission that went off without a hitch. Nope. That was asking far too much, apparently.

He cursed under his breath as he finished another row of shelves and phased through them to get to the next set. He pulled boxes from shelves, checked under the lids and dropped them from where he floated before grabbing another. He could hear footsteps running on the other side of the walls and if he had a heart in this form, he was certain it would be racing right now. As it was, his hands were starting to tremble slightly and… oh… He looked down and noticed his shaking hands were flickering in and out of visibility. Damn. It was going to be risky holding himself invisible for as long as he had already, the stress and anxiety was pushing his control over the edge.

"Ugh. Fuck it!" Danny growled, dropping the invisibility and intangibility. If there were cameras in here, then they would have noticed his path of boxes already anyways. He couldn't afford to waste all his energy on not being seen, when it was really inevitable at this point.

He tore through another row and grabbed another box off of the next set of shelves. He looked inside and froze. In a couple of clear plastic bag with big, white labels on it, sat the portal gun pieces. Danny cheered and grabbed the bags. It wasn't exactly easy to hold onto them. No handles on the bags, so he'd have to have a hand holding them at all times. He turned himself invisible and grinned when the bags vanished from view as well.

"At least these aren't quirk proof too." he said, turning towards the locked door.

Now all he had to do was wait. The instant anyone opened the door, he could phase right through them and zip out of the building. He really hoped the building didn't have some quirk-proof shield or anything that came online once the building had gone into lockdown.

Danny didn't have to wait long.

He heard footsteps drawing close to the door and went invisible and intangible. With his precious cargo in hand, he felt considerably calmer and more assured of his success. Of course, he still was trying to run the worst case scenarios around in his head from here on out, but it couldn't dampen his glee at having found the portal gun pieces. A voice called out from the other side of the door. Danny didn't have a clue what they said, but he started creeping closer to the door and held his breath. Thankfully, breathing in his ghost form was a necessity.

The door beeped. Then it swung open wide and men in kevlar uniforms swept into the room with big gun-like things, probably intended to shoot tasers or some other non-lethal projectile. Danny didn't wait to find out what they were. By the time the third guy was charging into the room, Danny was up and moving. He phased through the third and fourth guy. Outside the room a group of ten men waited. Danny paid them no mind. He just kept going. Flying and phasing through walls as he went, bundle clutched tightly to his chest.

Then he smacked his head and shoulder, hard, against one of the walls. He flickered into view. He'd almost dropped the bags, but managed to tighten his hold as he righted himself. If he made it out of here he was going to have one hell of a lump on his head, but he wasn't about to be taken down by a wall. He reached out and tried to phase his hand through the wall. This would have been the last wall. The outermost wall. No matter how hard he focussed, it refused to let him through.

"Fuck!" Danny cursed.

A voice shouted from down the hall and Danny only had a split second to phase through the floor, narrowly avoiding something that had been thrown at him. Danny flew through room after room, phasing through walls until he got to an exterior one, only to be greeted with the same result. His mind raced, trying to think of other ways he could get out. He flew up towards the roof, but that surface was just as quirk-proof as the rest. He doubted he'd have any luck in the basement. That left only the doors. He recalled seeing a side door before. He flew there, but it wouldn't let him through ether. A keypad was mounted on the wall next to the door. He wasn't getting out this way without the code.

Danny growled in frustration and zipped back through a nearby wall and phased through a small group of officers. He couldn't keep this up forever. He already felt slightly drained. This couldn't last. There was really only one option left. And, if they knew he couldn't get out any other way, then it would be heavily guarded by now.

The front entrance.

There was no other way though. Danny grit his teeth, held the gun bags tightly and made a bee-line for the front of the building. He swept through a wall and into the big reception area. He hovered, out of sight near the ceiling, taking in the sight below him and his heart sank. Groups of armed men were positioned at the two hallways that lead further into the building, waiting for him to come walking towards them. Closer to the entrance were more officers, talking into phones and communicators as well as each other. The officers weren't what caught Danny's eye though. Off to the side of the main doors, talking to an officer was Aizawa. And he looked furious.

A bunch of emotions rattled around in Danny's head at the sight, but he refused to give them any thought. He couldn't get distracted now. He knew Aizawa would come in person. He was the only one they knew for sure could have any effect on Danny. Still… he'd hoped he wouldn't have to see the man again.

Danny took a breath to steady his resolve and silently, unseen, floated down to the front door. His eyes never left Aizawa. Danny reached out once he was close enough and tried to phase through the glass door. But the glass remained solid. Danny had to bite his tongue to keep from making a sound. He quickly looked the door all over. It looked unlocked, from what he could tell. Danny hovered back a few feet and watched as an officer easily pushed the door open. Aizawa's head whipped around and Danny felt the air thicken slightly. The older man's eyes glowed red and his long, dark hair stood on end as he glared at the officer who had just entered the building. HIs quirk, Danny realized. He'd never seen it used on someone else before. The sight sent chills up his spine. The officer nodded and Aizawa blinked. His hair fell and the tension in the air vanished.

It took a moment to figure it out, but Danny wasn't stupid. The door didn't need to be locked. All he had to do was attempt to escape and then everyone would know right where he was. Aizawa would know right where to look. It looked like he was using his quirk on anyone who came in or out, so phasing through someone as they opened the door wasn't going to work this time either.

Fuck.

Danny would have to sneak up, open the door and bolt. He'd have to be very, very lucky.

Danny watched the same routine happen again as an officer walked out of the building. Door open. Aizawa glare. Officer left. Aizawa blinked and relaxed.

Aizawa blinked.

That was it!

All Danny had to do was wait until someone came in or out, Aizawa would use his quirk, but then he'd turn it off for a second. That would be Danny's only window. He knew it. He couldn't be too close, or risk being in the line of sight, but he'd have to be close enough to dash out in a fraction of a second.

His moment came before he could second guess his plan. Another officer from inside was making his way to the door. Danny watched, tensed and coiled like a snake, ready to strike. As soon as the guy touched the door, Aizawa's quirk activated. The man passed through the doorway. The door closed. Aizawa's eyes slid shut. Danny bolted.

He flew forward, full force. One hand out, intending to push on the door. He didn't expect the glass to be just glass. It shattered under the force of the hit, but he kept moving. No time to think about breaking the door. Just fly. Go! Get out of the entryway and fly.

As soon as he could feel the warm afternoon air, he turned upwards and dashed for the sky. Danny silently cursed as he flew, quickly sweeping one way, then another. Zigging and zagging and desperately holding into his invisibility. He couldn't let Aizawa see him. He had to keep moving. He swept around a tree, then dove through a nearby building. He flew through an office and let himself stop when he realized the dark room was empty, say for a desk and some wooden shelves. He pressed himself flat to the floor beneath the windows and tried to catch his breath.

He'd done it. He had the portal gun. He'd made it passed Aizawa. He was safe.

His shoulders were shaking and he let his invisibility drop entirely. A wave of relief washed over his body and he tried to let himself relax. Adrenaline was still racing through him, but there wasn't much he could do about that. His hands still clutched at the bags, unwilling to loosen, even now. He wasn't totally out of the woods yet, after all.

Once he was breathing at least somewhat normally, Danny rolled over into a crouch and peered up over the edge of the windowsill. He could see the street in front of the police station. Aizawa was standing outside, scanning the skies. Shit. Danny really had gotten out by the skin of his teeth.

Danny looked down and opened up the two bags, pouring the contents out on the office floor. He recognised most of the pieces. His mom had put him through enough courses on disassembling and reassembling the various fenton weapons. His hands worked over the pieces, fitting the pieces together as best he could. Some would clearly need bolts or screws before he could safely turn it all on, but it'd be easier to carry in one piece than in big, plastic, hard-to-grip bags. Besides, the activity was doing a lot to calm his nerves. It took only a few minutes and he had the portal gun almost entirely assembled. Now it just needed a few structural fixes and some juice, via the exto converter, and Danny would be home free.

He took a shaky breath and grabbed hold of his invisibility again. He stood and stepped away from the window, holding the fun to his chest. Then he hovered and started phasing through walls again. Warm air hit his face and Danny flew back out over the city. He moved through another building. Then he took a right and phased through another. After that his exhaustion really started to make itself known. He flew towards a street that ran alongside a park, noting that there were not nearly as many people here.

He let his invisibility drop as he flew. If he could hold back using one power, then he'd have a better chance at escaping using the others. Some people pointed, but he just kept moving. Maybe it'd be better if he flew through the park? The fewer eyes the better, right? He swept lower and turned to weave between-

Pain flared in Danny's left shoulder and he could feel himself falling out of the air. His mind panicked. Had Aizawa found him? This quickly? Shit. He was going to fall on that park bench. He phased through it on instinct and slipped underground for a moment before resurfacing. Wait… if Aizawa had turned his quirk on him… then how'd he phase through- Hot. Heat rippled out from his shoulder and he looked down. He'd been burned enough by Valerie's ecto weapons to recognize a burn mark when he saw one. The black jumpsuit was singed and slightly melted around the edges of the hole that revealed his burned shoulder.

Danny looked up and his eyes fell upon a giant of a man in a blue suit with flames coming off of him. Even the guys eyebrows were on fire, though he didn't seem bothered by that little fact. He radiated heat and power and his expression was one of utmost seriousness. It didn't take a genius to figure out where the attack had come from.

The huge, muscular guy pointed at Danny with one hand and started speaking in Japanese. He paused in his speech and used his other hand to summon a flame in his palm before speaking again.

"Sorry, Hot Shot." Danny quipped. "Can't understand you and I don't have time to deal with this right now."

Danny moved to fly away, but the other guy was faster, shooting a stream of fire in Danny's path. Danny darted back, the heat from the flames feeling far too warm on his ghostly cool skin. He went intangible, but even then he could feel the heat. That was nothing new. He could always feel things when he was intangible, but what he didn't expect was for the flames to latch onto him while he was intangible. Even as he backed away, the flames licked at the front of his suit and he could feel the too-hot burn against his chest. Not good.

Danny landed in a crouch on the ground, cradling the portal gun over the stinging spot on his chest that felt way too warm. He couldn't fight. He needed to escape. There was no telling when Aizawa would actually show up and Danny could not let that happen. Not this time.

Danny barely shifted on his feet and the fire guy shot a stream of flames at him. Danny dove out of the way and immediately flew upwards. He just made it above one of the trees, when something pulled at his right leg. He was violently yanked back to the ground and the pain hit him before the heat did. He had just enough time to look down and see the tendril of flames licking up the ankle of his boot before he hit the hard, unforgiving ground. The gun clattered out from under Danny and skid to a stop a few feet away.

"Shit." He hissed, forcing himself up onto his feet. Clearly he couldn't afford to turn his back on this foe. The man was walking towards him, unhurried but determined. "Ok, big guy? You wanna fight? Let's try this on for size."

Before he'd even stopped speaking, Danny moved. He used all the speed he could muster, diving forward while the guy was mid-step and dodging the first attack he threw. Danny forced himself to ignore the heat at his back and reached out. Intangibility wrapped around Danny as he touched the fire wielder and then he slipped inside the massive body.

Danny screamed through Endeavor's voice.

It was hot. Too hot! WAY TOO HOT! Why was it so hot in here? Fuck! Hell! Shit! He was burning. Every piece of his ghostly self felt like it was burning from inside this man's body. He was burning and he couldn't stop burning. Turn it off. Turn it off. Turn it off. Turn it off. Turn it off. Shit! Why couldn't he turn it off?! He couldn't stay. He was going to burn up and die if he stayed in this body. He was going to die.

Danny phased out of the man's body and stumbled back against a tree. He hissed at the contact. He felt raw and far too warm all over. He needed to cool down. He needed to cool down and get away. But when he looked up, he locked eyes with the huge fire guy and he felt the color drain from his face. There was a burning fury in the man's eyes and Danny knew he'd made the wrong move trying to overshadow him.

It hurt like hell, but Danny forced himself to move. The pillar of flames he narrowly avoided engulfed the tree he'd been leaning on in an instant. Danny didn't stop to watch. He couldn't. He ran and cursed. Every step he took was chased by flames and he was struggling to keep from falling over. He tried to fly, but streams of fire blocked his path even in the air. In moments the park all around them was alight with fire. His skin was screaming at him, he was freaking out and he couldn't get away. No. No he couldn't leave yet anyways. He needed the portal gun. Where was-

Danny spotted the gun on the ground a few feet to the right of the raging bulk of fire and muscle. A bulk that had noticed Danny's pause, shouted something and then shot another stream of fire right at him. Danny skirted the attack and rushed towards the gun. No time for fancy maneuvers. Just grab the gun and get gone. Maybe he could phase through the ground again. He doubted the fire could reach him there. Even if he couldn't hold his intangibility for long… he just had to grab the fun and get out of this guy's range.

But nothing was ever that simple.

Danny saw the flames out of the corner of his eye and swept upwards to avoid the stream. But they weren't aiming for him. As he flew back, he watched with wide eyes as the pillar of fire stayed its course and engulfed the portal gun. Something inside the gun overheated and a glass tube exploded open. Even through the flames Danny could see the metal buckling under the stress of the heat.

Danny wasn't given time to register what he was seeing. A wave of heat and pain crashed into his left side and sent him sailing towards the ground. He hit the grass with a thud. The impact couldn't compare to the pain in his side though. Everything was so hot. And he hurt everywhere. He needed relief. He needed to cool down. He needed… ice.

Green eyes shifted to an eerie, icy blue and Danny felt his ice powers well up inside him and flow outwards. Instantly the pain and heat all around him subsided considerably. He rolled onto his knees with only a slight twinge where the flames had really dug into him before. Damn. Why hadn't he thought of this before? He breathed out, his breath showing up easily in the now chilled air, and let the ice spread. Frost covered the grass all around him and began to spiral out from where he knelt.

Now that he wasn't burning, Danny's attention fell back to the portal gun. He quickly sent a burst of ice to overpower the flames that hid the gun from view. Something moved off to the side and Danny summoned an ecto-shield just in time to deflect a fireball. Then he pulled at the icy feeling in his core and pushed the feeling outward. A thick wall of ice came up around Danny, shielding him from view and giving him a clear path to the portal gun. Any other time he would have been impressed with himself. As he neared the lump of metal on the sidewalk though, what little pride he might have mustered was snuffed out.

Danny knelt down in front of the melted, mangled hardware. It didn't even look like a gun anymore. It was just a heap of still steaming metal, fused to the cement below it. Little pieces of glass stuck out from some parts. Danny reached out, but the surface was still too hot to even get within a few inches of. He stopped breathing. He stared. Everything around him seemed to dim and he was vaguely aware of his mouth moving, but he couldn't even hear his own words. The gun… it wasn't even a gun anymore. His one way home. The one thing that he'd been trying to get hold of, the one thing he'd been so focussed on retrieving. It was… gone. It was a pile of useless, molten metal and… he couldn't do anything about it.

A now all too familiar jolt of pain and heat crashed into Danny's back and he just barely caught himself on his hands to keep from tumbling face first into the molten remains of the gun. Danny's thoughts stopped. The tangent he'd been about to go down closed up and he just stopped for a second. One second of nothing. Then the pain pulsed and radiated from his back and his thoughts became very clear and very focussed.

Danny stood, far quicker than was natural. He turned, locking eyes with the fiery man, but he didn't see him. Not really. Danny didn't have a clue what the guy did next or what expressions he wore. Danny didn't see any of that. All he saw was red. Red and fire and burning and fury and hatred. And yet, he felt only the chill on his skin. The cold and ice gripped at him and poured out of his core, rushing towards the enemy in daggers that sped through the air and spikes that shot up from the ground. Ice spread out from Danny in all directions, even as he tried to focus his attack on the man before him.

But this foe would not take a hit like this so easily.

As fast as Danny was, this guy was well trained and had years of experience. He reached out and a massive jet of fire rushed forth to meet the ice. The two forces met with a hiss and Danny didn't wait to pour more energy into his attack. Fury dug into him as he felt the heat from the flames intensify. Ice may have been a good way to combat the head, but physics would still win out between the two. Realizing this, Danny dropped his hands and phased through the ground.

He could have left. He could have swept away and escaped this fire demon. But the thought barely crossed his mind before it was violently shoved aside.

This man had just destroyed the portal gun. This man had just taken away Danny's one way home. This man was going to pay.

Danny resurfaced a few feet behind the man, who was approaching the place where Danny had been only a moment before. He didn't waste time drawing out another bout of attacks. He didn't hesitate. Danny planted himself on the ground, took in a deep breath and wailed.

The sound tore through the air and pure energy rippled outwards. Waves of ghostly energy pulsed and hit Endeavor hard, sending the large man to the ground. He tried to raise a hand to retaliate, but each wave of force and sound hit him like a heavy punch. He covered his ears to at least block out the sound, but the force was far from waning. The Ghostly Wail echoed forth, digging into the ground, tearing branches from trees and shattering windows all along the block. The raw power of it was hard to ignore and even harder to withstand.

Danny didn't let up for a second. He was pouring every ounce of energy he had into this. His opponent was on his knees, but he wanted more. He wanted to see him fall. He wanted this one to suffer. Fury fueled him and he didn't care if it took the very last drop of ghost energy from him. Danny wanted to watch this man crumble before him. He would pay for what he'd just done. He would-

All at once the Ghostly Wail faded and the energy in the air vanished, as if it had never been their to begin with. Danny's voice wavered and fell silent as he fell forward, unable to move.

No.

He hit the ground without feeling the impact and the stinging in his lungs that couldn't pull in air was already fading. No pain. No feeling. No cool, ghostly core. A wisp of dark hair fell over his brow. His vision was just starting to go black when it all rushed back to him. The air. The ache in his chest, like he'd been kicked by a horse. His vision. He coughed and breathed and the first move he made was to look up. Not at the fire guy, but off to the side. Strained, red eyes locked with his mortal, blue ones.

"I said, stand down." Aizawa demanded.

Danny breathed. It wasn't as bad as the last time. Aizawa must not have let his quirk linger, Danny thought. He blinked and contemplated Aizawa's words. It didn't sound like the worst idea… Then he heard a shuffle from the other direction. He turned his head and watched as the enemy got to his feet, flames still licking at his suit. Danny felt his lip twitch and something akin to a growl rumbled in his chest.

"Danny, stay down!" Aizawa shouted. He said something in Japanese to the other guy but Danny didn't know or care what it was.

Danny forced an arm up under himself, glaring daggers at the man ahead. It took all the concentration he had to reach back in his mind and latch onto his ghost half, but he managed it. He pulled it forward, dragging it around him like a blanket and he felt his eyes glowing and the energy pouring into his hands.

This time, when Aizawa's quirk hit him, the darkness took over completely and Danny was out before he even hit the ground.


	11. Chapter 11

The rhythmic sound of knocking silenced the already quiet bar. Without waiting for an answer, the door swung open revealing a middle aged man with messy grey hair, a rumbled suit and a smile that openly lacked at least one tooth. The man took a drag of his cigarette and waltzed up to the bar, ignoring the murderous looks from the bar's select few patrons. He wasn't here for the grunts, after all. He stopped in front of the only man who sat at the bartop, ignoring the shadow-y keep behind the counter. This man had bluish grey hair that obscured his face from view and wore ill fitting, ratty clothes. Not much else really stood out about him, but everyone was keeping their distance.

"Got that footage you wanted." Wafts of tobacco smoke billowed out from between his lips as he spoke. He held out a flash drive to the barkeep, but didn't take his eyes off the man sitting before him. "News is already circulating it. No doubt their pissed about not getting the footage themselves, but everyone's already running the story." He leaned casually against the counter. "Teenager takes on the number two hero in the country. Ha! And here we thought Stain was gonna be topping the headlines for another month at least."

"Don't say that name."

The middle aged man held up his hands. "Sorry. My bad. I know that's a touchy subject. Still, this little development might just make that little milestone a thing of the past."

Both men turned their attention to a television behind the bar. The keep plugged in the drive and pressed a button on the remote. Instantly the screen came to life. The footage was clearly shot on a phone and was anything but steady, but the important parts of the scene were at least mostly in focus. The Flame Hero, stood in a burning park area, shooting powerful attacks at a child, greatly dwarfed by Endeavor's immense size. The kid dodged and flew and fought with ice and force fields and phased right through solid objects like it was nothing. He was young, thin, by all accounts he didn't look like a threat at all, but he was still holding his own against the skilled hero. Fire forced the person holding the camera to move and the video just caught sight of the kid diving towards the ground as a wall of flame cut him off from view.

The video feed cut to black for a moment, before starting up again. This time from a different angle. The kid was hunched over something on the ground as Endeavor approached from behind. The Flame Hero sent a warning shot at the kid's back, then all hell broke loose. The footage seemed to go on the fritz, flickering and going static-y as it captured the teen on camera. He radiated power and seemed to glow as he sent attacks at the overgrown hero without hesitation. Then he vanished. Shouting could be heard and the camera turned to see the kid crouch just before a deafening sound filled the recording. The feed crackled and fizzed before cutting off entirely.

"It's impressive, I'll give him that." Said a scarred man from a table nearby.

"Indeed." Drolled the barkeep. "It's not every day you see an adolescent who can face off against any of the top five."

The man, the leader with the faded blue hair, hummed in thought. "What did they say his quirk was, again, Giran?" he asked, his voice raw and cracked.

"They didn't." Giran said, taking another puff of his cigarette before continuing. "Every paper and news station has their theories, but no one's got an actual answer. For all intents and purposes, the kid appears to have multiple quirks."

Those words hung in the air like the smoke that had begun to permeate the room. Everyone there knew the weight of that revelation and each of them was beginning to calculate what might happen next.

"What made him stop though?" The leader asked. "What was he leaning over on the ground?"

As if it had been a request, the barkeep rewound the footage and they watched the scene again. He paused, just as the pillar of fire was about to obscure the fight from the camera's view. The frame showed the teen curling away from the flames, but in the direction he'd been heading, sat an object of some sort.

"A weapon?" The barkeep asked.

"Looks like a gun!" Cheered a too-happy blonde girl from one of the booths.

"So it does…" The leader mused. "Must've been important if the kid was willing to fight Endeavor for it."

The scarred guy groaned from his table. "So are you planning on recruiting the kid or stealing the gun?"

"Or both?" the girl squealed. "I'd love to get up nice and close to that twiggy little glowstick."

"Getting the gun thing is gonna be tricky." Giran mused. "My informant at the station says that Endeavor melted it. They managed to scrape the metal off of the sidewalk, but it's little more than scrap metal at this point." He sighed, exuding more smoke. "Yup, just lumpy, molten, glowing scrap metal."

The leader tilted his head. "Glowing?"

"Oh did I forget to mention that?" Giran asked. "Yeah. My guy said the metal is eerie cold to the touch at all times and if you leave it in a dark room it gives off a green glow."

The leader hummed. "Anything you've heard of Kurogiri?"

"No, sir." the barkeep said. "But I can certainly look into it, if you so desire."

The leader nodded. "Yes. I think that would be wise. For now, we'll stick to our original plans. But this could be something to keep an eye on in the meantime." he turned, finally looking towards the man who had entered their den. "Nice job, Giran. Any chance you know where their keeping the kid?"

Giran smirked. "Word is Eraserhead took the kid down. They've got him locked up in police custody, though my informant said he's not at the station. My guess, given those burns, is that they've got him locked up at one of the hospitals. Good luck getting in there. Those places are as tightly cinched as prisons, from what I've seen."

"No matter." The leader droned, waving his hand dismissively. "They can't keep him hidden forever. And, if all goes according to plan this week, we'll be even better prepared to lure this one in after he's been on the receiving end of those, better-than-thou heroes." he hissed.

Giran straightened up and nodded to the barkeep. "A pleasure, as always, but I got other jobs I gotta tend to. If you need anything else, you know how to get a hold of me."

Kurogiri nodded and watched the man leave. He went back to wiping down the countertop as Shigaraki stared at the television, still frozen on the frame of the kid and the weapon. A cracked, chapped grin pulled at his lips as his mind curled around an idea. This could be just what they'd been waiting for.


	12. Chapter 12

The beeping sounds were the first thing to register. Quiet at first, but the more he focussed on the noise, the louder it seemed to get. Danny winced. Something moved against his face and his eyes shot open. There was a hard, plastic, cone-thing covering his nose and mouth. He reached a hand up to pull it off, but his arm was stuck. He pulled, but his wrist was strapped tightly to the railing along the bed. His first instinct was to pull harder, but that turned out to be fruitless. The beeping sound sped up, ringing in his ears as he tried to break free. With a thought he made his arm intangible. It remained strapped to the bed. Danny froze. He reached out with his powers, as he'd become accustomed to, but his arm remained solid and bound.

How…?

Danny immediately raced through his thoughts, feeling for the icy core of his ghost half. The heart monitor's beeping seemed to quicken its pace further, but that was little more than an afterthought. Only now did he notice that his shoulder ached and his skin felt raw in some places. He also had a massive migraine that was quickly overwhelming the other feelings. That wasn't important right now, though. He tried to put the pulsing ache behind his eyes aside and dove into his core, feeling around blindly for something that was normally overwhelming and unmistakable. He couldn't find it. His core. His ghost half. It wasn't there.

No, wait!

There!

It was just a flicker, but Danny knew that icy chill instantly. It was distant and muted, as if it had been thrust under the ice of a frozen lake. He couldn't touch it. He couldn't access his ghost half at all. But it was there.

Why was it _there_?

A door opened and Danny's thoughts were thrust back to the room and his aching head and shoulder. His gaze fell upon a small crowd bustling into the room, one after another. Two nurses, a man who he recognized as one of the officers from the station, and a couple others who's status he couldn't guess based on their uniforms or lackthereof. He tried to flinch back as the nurses reached out to him, but the straps around his wrist kept him bound tight. Everyone was speaking in Japanese and regardless of his attempts, he couldn't get out of reach of the hands that came for him.

"Get back!" he hissed, the sound muffled by the mask-thing on his face. "Stop it! Let go of me!"

There were too many hands. Too many voices and people moving and hands on him. His heart was racing and the monitor was beeping and his head pulsed painfully. His thrashing hardly helped the matter. No one was even paying his demands any mind. He couldn't recall a time he'd ever wanted to phase out of a room more than he did in that moment. But that normally simple escape had clearly been taken from him. A hand reached out and pulled the mask off his face. He lunged forward and snapped at the too-close hand, gnashing his teeth despite himself. The nurse flinched back with a squeak of surprise. From the end of the bed, the officer surged forward, saying something as he moved, and put his hands on Danny's shoulders, forcing him back against the bed.

"Get off of me!" Danny growled. "Stop it! Let me go! Let me go!" Rage and fear and pain were overwhelming and all he could think about was how he was going to get out of this. He had to get out. He had to-

"Danny!"

Danny faltered. He knew that voice. He turned his head and caught sight of a tall man in a leather jacket and long, blonde hair. It took a moment for Danny to recognize him, with his hair down and the big bulky collar thing missing from around his neck, but the tiny mustache and colored shades registered after a moment. Present Mic. Danny blinked. He was only given a moment before the hands on him shifted and he immediately resumed his struggle.

"Woah woah, hey! Chill out, kid." Mic said, taking a few steps into the room. He said something quick to the officer and nurses, who paused in their efforts. One responded and Mic nodded before saying something else. Then the hands lifted off of him and everyone seemed to take a step back. All except Mic.

"Easy there, Danny." he said, lifting his hands like one would when approaching a wild animal. Danny figured he probably should have been insulted by that, but at the moment he really couldn't care less about what anyone thought of him. Mic didn't back up, but he didn't make any move to come closer either. "They're just trying to help, alright?"

"What's going on?" Danny asked, eyes flicking between Mic and the other occupants of the room.

"It's ok. You just spooked them." Mic said, his voice calm and clear. "Your heart rate went up too high too quickly. They're just trying to help you."

"Why am I strapped down? What's going on? Why can't I phase through these? What did you do to me?" The questions poured out of him before he could stop and suddenly the beeping returned and the voices grew frantic again.

"Danny, you need to calm down." Mic said, keeping his voice as calm as before. "I'll explain everything, but you have to get your heart rate back down first, okay?"

"I don't give a damn about my fucking heart rate!" Danny barked. "Why can't I go ghost? What did you people do to me?"

One of the nurses said something and then the three from before rushed forward again. Once more Danny was held down. His head pulsed. His shoulder screamed. In the background he could hear Mic's voice telling him that everything was fine and that he just needed to relax. Then there was something sharp on- no, _in_ his arm. And then everything seemed to fade. He'd been drugged and tranqued enough times to realize what was happening, but it never stopped being unsettling. His body relaxed against his will, falling limp and still against the sheets. The infernal beeping seemed to slow and the world around him blinked back to black. The voices faded out soon after that.

This time, when consciousness returned to him, his memories raced to settle into his mind before he could even think to move. He let them come, keeping his breathing steady as he sorted through what he could recall.

He was in a hospital room… again. It'd be really nice if that didn't become a habit.

The beeping sound off to the right told him that he was still hooked up to a heart monitor. Good to know. Whatever breathing mask he'd had the first time he'd woken up had been removed, so at least he didn't have to deal with that. He turned his arms ever so slightly, only to find the straps from before still firmly in place. Actually, he was pretty sure his pinkie fingers had long since fallen asleep. The familiar pins-and-needles sensation lingered if he tried to move his hands too much. He wasn't really surprised.

He recalled struggling and trying to fight off the nurses and officer from before. If he'd cared a bit more he might have been embarrassed at his own behavior, but at the moment it did little more than to explain why the restraints were deemed necessary in the first place. He _had_ tried to _bite_ one of them. He couldn't really blame them for wanting to keep him restrained.

His thoughts drifted to his ghost half and he quickly found himself reaching out for it once more. Just as before, he found it only barely noticeable behind some kind of barrier. If he hadn't known where to look for it, he likely wouldn't have noticed it at all. The thought sent a chill down his spine. He'd become so accustomed to feeling that part of himself, lingering on the edge of his mind. Never more than a stray impulse out of reach. It was his other half. And now he had to seriously search just to find the slightest shadow of it, hidden and out of reach.

But it wasn't gone. It wasn't even weakened. That much he could tell for sure. Ghost powers or not, he'd been surrounded by ghost energy for long enough to recognize the feel of it. His ghostly core was no different. It writhed and ebbed beyond the barrier, just as strong and ready to react as ever. It pulsed and stretched, as if reaching out for him to reclaim it.

And he so desperately wanted to.

It never really occurred to him how safe he felt, knowing that he could easily turn intangible to escape a trap or avoid an attack. Even in day-to-day instances, being able to hide in plain sight invisibly or sense when a ghost was about to attack, was a major part of his existence that he'd been taking for granted. Of course, that last one hardly seemed as relevant in Japan as it had in Amity Park, but regardless. The sense of security his powers provided only really made itself known in their absence.

Beyond that, he didn't feel like himself without his ghost half. It was like a piece of him had been cut out and put in a jar on top of a shelf he couldn't reach.

Ugh.

He wasn't sure who would get more of a kick out of that mental image, the Guys in White or his clueless parents.

His eyes snapped open.

The room was dark. The lights, which had been so bright before, were considerably dimmer now. No doubt a setting for nighttime to soothe sleeping patients. There were no nurses or officers in the room this time around. The only sound was the steady beep of the monitor to the right of the bed.

None of this really registered in Danny's mind though. No, instead another memory forced its way to the front of his thoughts and demanded his full attention. Images flickered behind his eyes. The break-in at the station. His escape attempt. Getting past Aizawa. Fixing the portal gun. Trying to fly out of the city. The fire guy. Fire. Fire everywhere. Flames licking at his skin. Flames engulfing the portal gun. The melted gun. The gun was melted. His way home was destroyed. His only way home… was…

"Danny?"

Danny turned his head and locked eyes with Present Mic. The older man was sitting in a chair off to the left of the bed, nearly hidden in the shadows of the room. He leaned forward, casually resting his elbows on his knees and setting his chin on his folded hands. Danny blinked at him. Mic's eyes flicked up to look at something over Danny's shoulder. Danny turned his head and saw the monitor and only then noticed that the damn beeping had sped up.

"You alright, kid?" Mic asked.

Danny forced his eyes closed and made himself take a few deep breaths. The last thing he wanted was another wave of people rushing in and grabbing him again. His mind didn't want to let up though, insisting on throwing images of the fight back at him. What was worse, memories of his home started to flit in and out of his thoughts between the flames. He could feel the back of his throat tightening up. No. Nononononono. He was not about to fall apart, bound to a stupid hospital bed, in front of someone he barely knew. What was left of his intent latched onto his still aching shoulder. The one that had been so badly burned. Now that he thought about it, he could feel the uncomfortable heat of it. The throb under his skin and the stinging warmth under the bandages. He focussed on that. He tried to pull all his thoughts towards feeling that physical pain.

It was better than the mental pain that seemed so eager to dig into him at the moment.

"Shoulder hurts." he hissed, hoping that the crack in his voice was more convincing than revealing.

Mic nodded. "You want me to get a nurse for ya? They've already got you on a few pain meds, but since no one's really sure how your healing factor reacts with medication, they've been airing on the side of caution."

Danny nodded, not trusting his voice a second time. Mic stood and went to the door. When he opened it, Danny caught a glimpse of an officer standing outside. Clearly he wasn't about to get any privacy anytime soon.

 _He wasn't going home anytime soon either._

The too tight feeling in his throat tried to rear back up and he could feel his eyes start to water.

No. No! The shoulder. Focus on the shoulder. Pain and burning and warmth and stinging skin. He twisted his arms in the straps and flexed his legs.

There!

His right ankle was burned too. Actually, the more he focussed on it, the more he began to realize that this burn was even worse than the shoulder. How had he not noticed that one sooner? Of course, now that he had noticed it, he couldn't go back to ignoring it.

Wasn't that the whole point of this train of thought though? Focusing on physical pain to help ignore the mental shit? He was starting to wish he'd stayed oblivious to his wounds for at least a little while longer.

Mic stepped back into the room, followed by a stern-faced, bespectacled nurse. The woman strode forward with purpose and began tending to the monitor and checking notes on some sort of holographic pad she was carrying. After a few, short moments she turned her cold, piercing gaze to Danny.

"Hello, Mr. Fenton." she said, her english heavily accented. But at least it _was_ English. "You need more pain medication, yes?"

Danny nodded. "My shoulder, and my leg." he hissed.

She nodded, as if expecting the description, and tapped the screen a few more times. Then she reached out and pulled an IV-bag-stand-thing from the corner of the room. She quickly and efficiently went about attaching a bag and uncapping a needle at the end of a long tube. Once satisfied with her work, she turned back to Danny and paused, holding the needle in one hand where he could see it.

"This is IV." she explained. "It will help with pain. Do not fight."

Danny nodded and kept as still as he could. He made himself focus on a dark spec on the ceiling, instead of the needle. A quick pinch was soon replaced by an uncomfortable feeling of something foreign sticking out of his skin. At first he felt nothing. Maybe something slight, but nothing even remotely close enough to distract from the too-hot skin and stinging. He winced and the woman adjusted a little device attached to the bottom of the bag. She continued to glance between Danny and the device, making little adjustments after a few moments, then waiting, then fiddling with it again. Then, slowly Danny started to feel a pleasant numbness creep through his body. Well, not numbness exactly. He could still feel the straps around his wrists and the warmth of the burns, but the pain was fading, finally. As the pain faded out, a fog seemed to roll over his thoughts. He found that focussing on anything was quickly becoming a chore. Instinctively he hated that. He hated feeling at all out-of-control of himself… and yet… his mind was just barely dipping across the thoughts he was trying to avoid and then he was thinking about that spec on the ceiling again. Never enough to feel more than a basic sadness and then with a turn of his head he latched onto something else to think about.

That was… a relief…

The nurse left. Had she said anything? Danny didn't remember. Oh well. Probably wasn't important anyways.

"Feeling better?"

Danny lolled his head around and found Mic, sitting back in his seat, watching Danny from afar.

Danny nodded. "Much better."

"Good." Mic said. "You shouldn't have to be miserable while you heal."

Danny frowned. "Can't feel my powers. Don't know if I will heal. Not like normal. Well… normal for me."

Mic made a sound, almost like a laugh. "Two minutes in and you're already high as a kite, huh?" He sighed. "Yeah. The police managed to find a quirk repressing cuff that seems to work on your super special powers. They put it on your ankle there." He said, pointing to the end of the bed.

Danny lifted his head. "That why my ankle hurts?" he asked, tentatively wiggling his right leg.

"No, that's from the burn." Mic explained. "The cuff is on the other leg."

Curious, Danny wiggled his left leg. He felt something hugging at his ankle, but it wasn't necessarily uncomfortable. Just unusual. "Okay."

Mic lifted a brow at him. "Glad to see you're taking house arrest so well."

Danny turned to look at the other man, his brows furrowing. "I'm not going to prison?"

"Well, to be honest, the courts are going to have to figure out the details long term, but for right now, no. You're not going to prison." he shifted in his seat. "But you are in a heap of trouble."

Danny nodded, his head wobbling a bit more than it really needed to. "That makes sense. I did break into the police place."

"And stole evidence. And resisted arrest." Mic said, sitting back and holding up a hand as he counted off the list of Danny's apparent crimes. "Not to mention the fight with another pro in public and the resulting collateral damage."

Danny frowned. Collateral damage. He knew what that meant. "I didn't... I didn't hurt anyone... did I?"

Mic sighed. "There's a couple of civilians who got some minor cuts and bruises, but nothing major. The buildings around the park and the park itself are another matter entirely."

"Hey, the fire dude did more damage than I did for that bit." Danny hastily slurred.

"Endeavor is already facing reprimands for allowing the fight to grow as out of hand as it did and is prepared to put a hefty personal donation towards repairs."

"Well… good." Danny said, nodding as if pleased by that answer. He moved to cross his arms, but the straps held them steadily to the bed railing. Danny rolled his eyes. "The stealing thing is stupid though. The portal gun was mine in the first place. My property. If anything the police stole it from me and I was just taking it back."

Mic laughed, but there was an edge to it. "Somehow I doubt the courts are going to see it that way. But, maybe your representative will get you a good lawyer. If it even goes that far."

"Repra- repersen- titive?"

"Representative, kid." Mic said. "A social worker, to be specific. They've been assigned your case and are in charge of making sure your being taken care of properly for as long as you are without a legal guardian."

"Oh…" Danny mumbled. His thoughts lingered over that topic for a moment. He didn't have a legal guardian in this world. He didn't have anyone, really. No family. No friends. He might have had Aizawa, but given that the man wasn't in the room with him at the moment, he figured he'd successfully burned that bridge beyond repair.

"I fucked up." Danny mumbled, feeling his eyes grow wet once more. "Made the wrong choice. Again... " he huffed, turning his head to try and press his face into the pillow. This was the Nasty Burger thing all over again. Except this time, he doubted Clockwork would be able to come to his rescue.

On the up side though, at least Vlad wasn't here. So Dark Danny couldn't be a thing in this universe. Right?

He decided to just run with that logic. It made enough sense for now, though it did little to make him actually feel any better.

"He hates me, doesn't he?" Danny mumbled.

Mic's brow furrowed. "Who?"

"Aizawa."

Mic sighed. "Kid, I'm not gonna lie, he's pretty damn pissed, but that's not why you're getting a social worker. You were supposed to get one from the start, but given that your situation was so unique and we didn't expect you to be here for an extended period of time, the rules were bent for you." Mic explained.

"Why isn't he here then?" Danny mumbled, noting that he sounded like a spoiled kid who wasn't getting his way. He could be embarrassed about that later though.

"He was when they put the cuff on." Mic said. "Wanted to make sure you weren't going to have any adverse reactions, ya know? Once we knew that you weren't gonna keel over, he had to get back to his actual job. The training camp got delayed a whole day already and I doubt he'd be willing to push it back any further." Mic leveled a look at him. "You're not the only rebellious teenager he's got to take care of after all."

"Rebellious… heh. Never us'ta be…" Danny mumbled, feeling his eyelids droop as he spoke. Knowing that Aizawa probably didn't hate him made him feel marginally better, though he still felt like shit. The exhaustion was starting to pull him back under again. He welcomed the feeling this time, not wanting to say too much with the drugs making it hard to filter his words. "'M gonna go back t'sleep now." Danny slurred. "Sorry…"

"That's alright, kid." Mic's voice drifted over to him. "I'll be here when you wake up again."

Hizashi remained true to his word.

He had planned to just stay until the social worker got there, but that had been before Danny had woken up. The kid had been out cold for almost a full day after the battle and when he finally roused, he had hardly been the same, non-confrontational teen that Hizashi had gotten to know. Not that he really knew him well at all to begin with. Still, it unsettled him to see the kid so distressed and upset. Even more so, once he'd really started to wake up and got to talking. If he'd thought Danny was a ticking time bomb of emotions a few days ago, the kid in front of him now was a volcano, ready to burst.

It didn't feel right to just up and leave him with a bunch of strangers, when he was in such a fragile state. And, since the school was on Summer Break already, he didn't exactly have anything else that he needed to do.

So, Hizashi stayed. He watched over the kid while he slept, translated for him when he needed things and introduced him to the social worker once she arrived. All the while, Danny seemed to shut down further and further as time dragged on. Whether it was the feeling of being cut off from his powers, or the loss that the kid was certainly starting to feel, he couldn't be sure. Hizashi decided not to press the issue and told the social worker just as much. She seemed to agree, though she made a point to say that Danny should start seeing a grief counselor once he got out of the hospital and settled into a more stable living situation. Her main focus, of course was handling all the legal jargon and in trying to keep Danny out of prison.

While Endeavor's legal team had unanimously agreed to put forth funds to repair damages caused by the fight, the debate over who to blame the incident on was still raging. Facing the number two hero's agency in court was no laughing matter. Even so, the social worker seemed convinced that neither Danny nor Endeavor would end up spending time in a courtroom. Hizashi doubted that _very_ much, though he was hardly an expert in that kind of stuff. He had his own legal team who worried about such things for him, not that they had actually spent any time on him since he started at UA.

Danny ended up spending another night in the hospital while the worst of his injuries were tended to. His healing factor had been reduced significantly from what Hizashi understood, but he was doing better than expected, considering the severity of the burns. The nurses seemed pleased with his progress, though Danny was still being prescribed pain killers for the next few days. Once the nurses and doctors were convinced that he was healing well enough, they discharged him.

The social worker set everything up so that Danny could stay with Hizashi temporarily, while they arranged a more permanent living situation for the kid. It seemed like everyone had very different opinions on where Danny should be kept long term. For now though, Hizashi had the space, the resources, the status as a pro and a decent camaraderie with the kid. He was the best option they had for now.

Danny was unsteady on his feet at first, having to cope with the heavily bandaged right leg and clearly trying not to put too much weight on it as he moved. It was suggested he use crutches for at least the first week. Hizashi fully expected Danny to object to the idea, as any teenager in his case likely would, but he didn't. Danny just nodded and accepted the offer with the same blank look that he'd been wearing since he'd woken up, plastered onto his face. The sight didn't sit well with Hizashi.

When it was all said and done, papers signed, custody overturned, contact information traded and instructions given, Danny and Hizashi didn't make it out of the hospital until well past sunset. Danny didn't speak on the car ride home. Hizashi didn't expect him to. He just stared out the window and sat, still and silent. It was more than a little unsettling. He had hoped the kid would make a comment about the size of the house as they pulled up, though he wasn't surprised when Danny hardly reacted at all.

"I set up the guest room on the second floor for you." HIzashi said, as he led Danny into the foyer. "Feel free to explore if you want. My room's down that hall on the left if you need me." He explained, pointing down one hall as they passed it by. Hizashi led them up the stairs and continued explain where notable rooms were, kitchen, bathrooms, theater room, etc. Danny hobbled up the stairs behind him, offering no commentary as he looked where Hizashi pointed.

They came to the guest room and Hizashi opened the door. Inside was a simple queen bed, a desk and drawers that fit into part of the wall to allow for more floor space. Off in one corner were a few shopping bags. Some were from his and Danny's first trip to the mall, still filled with the clothes he'd bought for the kid. Others were new.

"Took the liberty of getting you a few more clothes." Hizashi said, watching Danny take in the room with that same blank expression on his face. "There's also a few other things in there. Sudoku book. Music card. A few things to decorate with. Nothing to paint the walls or anything, just knick knacks, mostly. I know the room's pretty bland. Figured you'd want to… make it less bland, I guess?"

The silence that lingered in the air between them felt all at once deathly still and charged with unspoken tension.

"Okay then!" Hizashi pushed off of the door frame. "You know where to find me if you need me." He turned to leave and then paused. He really didn't want to add anything else onto Danny's plate, but it was best that he found out now, rather than later. "Oh, one more thing. Figured you should know, given your history with running off on your own." he pointed at Danny's foot. The one that had the ankle monitor. "If you try to leave my property without permission, the police will be dispatched to come and track you down. And… well, to put it bluntly, this is the last time you're getting any breaks, kid... Sorry."

Danny nodded, setting his crutches against one of the walls and pointedly not looking in Hizashi's direction.

"I wish things were different, kid. Really…" He didn't know what else to say and Danny certainly wasn't giving him anything else to go on. Seeing that the kid wasn't going to respond, Hizashi sighed and closed the door behind him as he left.

Hizashi made his way back down the stairs and into the kitchen, flicking on the living room's tv as he passed by to fill the too-quiet air. The hospital food was hardly edible, much less appetizing, so he hadn't exactly been eating full meals while he had been staying with Danny. Now that he was back in his own home though, he was eager to stir up some actual food and put his growling stomach at ease. Before long the blonde was humming to himself as he cooked, letting some of the tension from earlier ease from his shoulders. By the time he'd finished preparing something that actually looked enticing, Hizashi felt better. Not great, but more like himself for sure.

He'd just started scooping servings into bowls, when a crash echoed down from the second floor. Hizashi dropped the bowl he'd been holding and raced up the stairs. A heavy thud and a frustrated shout met his ears as he neared the guest room.

"Danny?" he shouted, rounding the corner. _"What's going-"_ he paused. Had to remember to speak in english. "Danny, what's- ?" His words caught in his throat as he threw the door open.

The bedside lamp lay shattered near the door, a dent carved into the drywall above it. The desk was overturned, its few contents spilled across the floor. All around the room shreds of cloth were strewn about. Pieces of shirts that had yet to be worn, torn and ripped and ravaged.

These broken objects were not what gave Hizashi pause.

Standing, hunched and shaking amidst the chaos, was Danny. His mask of neutrality was nowhere in sight, replaced with a whirlwind of emotions. Rage. Sorrow. Frustration. He growled, a guttural, animalistic sound that had no place coming from a human teenager, and hefted a ceramic bowl at the wall he was facing. It shattered upon impact, leaving another dent in the drywall.

"Hey!" Hizashi shouted.

Danny whipped his head around, noticing the other man for the first time. His red-rimmed eyes flickered green for a fraction of a second before sputtering back to blue. Fury, laced with pain, seemed to swirl behind his eyes. Tear tracks lined his cheeks and every muscle from his jaw to his hands were wound up and shuddering.

"What!" Danny shouted, his hands balling into fists as he glared at Hizashi. "What do you want? What else could you possibly want from me?" His voice broke as he screamed. "In case you haven't noticed, I've got nothing left to give! You people have taken everything from me! Everything! My home. My family. My friends. My powers. My free fucking will!" His eyes squeezed shut, sending more tears streaming down his cheeks. When he opened them next he turned and grabbed something off the ground. A plastic rocket Hizashi had found online. He'd thought the kid might like it. Might make him feel more at-home. He hurled it at the wall and Hizashi watched it break apart.

"I don't want your gifts!" Danny started. "I don't want any of this crap! I never did! I never wanted to be here! I never wanted to come to this stupid world and have everything I cared about stolen from me! You- you stole it! You took it all… all of it… all of it…" The last words caught on a sob and the heat and fury seemed to be seeping out of him. His shoulders shook and he dug his hands into his dark hair, pulling it harshly as he began to curl in on himself.

"Danny." Hizashi said, his voice quiet in a room filled with heavy breathing and broken sobs. He took a step into the room and Danny's head shot up, catching Hizashi with another glare.

"Dont. Don't you dare take another step closer!" He hissed.

Hizashi stopped and held his hands up. "I'm sorry, kid."

Danny barked out a laugh that sounded all too hollow. "Yeah, I bet you are." he said in a mocking tone. His lip twitched and his head turned down so that Hizashi couldn't see his face. "Get out."

"Danny-"

"Just leave me alone!" He shouted, locking eyes with Hizashi again and taking a bold step forward. "Or is privacy just one more thing I no longer have anymore? One more thing you bastards want to take from me."

Hizashi wilted at that.

The kid was hurting. Obviously. The dam had broken and this was the result. Even if the kid wasn't cut off from his powers, Hizashi doubted he'd have the will to impose on his grieving.

He let his hands fall to his sides and stepped back towards the door. Danny watched him go. Hizashi paused, his hand on the door handle, eyes downcast.

"I'll be downstairs if you need me." Hizashi said, his voice quiet and steady.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw some of the rage melt off of Danny's shoulders before he closed the door. He forced himself to take deliberate steps down the hall, away from the mess of a kid left in the room. As he reached the top of the stairs he heard the wrecked and unrestrained sobs, only slightly muffled by the door and walls.

His heart broke at the sound.

He forced himself down the stairs and back into the kitchen to retrieve his forgotten dinner. Robotically, he scraped the food into containers and stuck them in the fridge. His appetite was long gone and his mind was still back in that room, with the crying boy who'd lost everything.


	13. Chapter 13

Danny watched Mic leave.

He watched the man walk out and close the door. Just as he'd wanted him to.

The click of the door was like a gunshot in the too quiet room. The sound echoed through his mind, violently tearing through memories and kicking up a hurricane with the pieces that remained. And, this time, he didn't fight it. Now that he was alone… really, truly alone, he didn't even try to hold back the onslaught.

It had been the model rocket that had set him off.

The model reminded him of the one his mom had gotten him when he turned nine. She'd set the whole day aside to help him build it. It was a little messy, since the pieces had to be glued together and Danny was a little heavy-handed with that part. One wing, which his mom had done, looked almost perfect, while the other was lopsided and would forever sport a half-dripping glob of clear glue off of the leading edge. The thruster pieces had fallen onto the floor at one point and one of them was only found three years later under the couch. His choice of Hotrod Red paint, ended up needing multiple coats to really shine through, but Danny had been too impatient for that and only managed to let one coat dry before insisting it was good enough. The little model was a mess and ended up being something Danny kept on the shelf in his closet, out of site after he turned twelve and couldn't ignore the flaws anymore.

He'd almost forgotten about it.

This one wasn't even close to the same. It was the wrong shape and size. The deep blue finish was nothing like the vibrant red, dotted with clear glue. It was perfect, while his rocket, back home in his closet, was messy and embarrassing.

And yet the memory had rushed at him. Blindsided him and forced him to feel every emotion that was attached to it, right there. The memory played out in the blink of an eye and a single thought shattered what was left of his composure.

 _You never said 'thank you' to her.  
And now, you never will._

After that things started to blur together. Every happy memory from his life back in Amity started to roll over him, laced with the knowledge that he could never go back now. He was officially cut off from everyone he'd ever loved or known. They were gone. He couldn't hold back the tears and that pissed him off. And then all his focus took a sharp turn towards everything that had happened since he'd arrived in Japan. All the things that had gone wrong. All the feelings of being trapped and his problems being belittled by everyone around him. Fury and rage boiled over and all too soon he was throwing things.

He wanted so badly to blast things. To rip through the clothes with his enhanced strength and destroy and let out the roiling energy building up in a corner of his soul that he could no longer access. That only fueled his emotions.

By the time Mic had walked in, Danny was ready for a fight. He'd wanted so badly to let out his anger and just hit something other than the damn wall. He wanted to feel something break under his touch.

But Mic hadn't jumped in to restrain Danny or hurried to defend his or Aizawa's actions. He'd just stared at Danny, through those stupid, rose-tinted glasses, and listened to him scream. Danny couldn't even really recall what he said, but he remembered the feelings underneath the words. He remembered how loud he was and the pity on Mic's face.

And then the guy just… left.

He left, just as Danny had told him to, and through some unseen force, he took all of Danny's anger along with him.

Danny wasn't sure when he'd ended up on the floor, sobbing and screaming. He could feel his throat straining with the action, but the sound didn't reach his ears. He was little more than a shaking pile of pent up stress and tears, forced by his own stupid brain to remember all the things that made him realize what he'd lost.

 _Jazz won't be nagging you to text her if you're going to be out late._

His hands fisted into his hair as another sob rocked through him.

 _No more of Tucker's lame puns._

He tried to curl in further on himself, but the thick bandaging on his leg prevented the natural movement.

 _So much for buying tickets to that concert for Sam's birthday. That would have been yesterday, wouldn't it?_

He pushed himself back against the wall, letting his bad leg lay out, while he pulled is other knee up to his chest.

 _Never gonna hear mom and dad's inventions whir to life whenever you walk into a room._

His head fell to rest against his knee as he tried to take a shuddering breath, tasting salt as his tears streamed, unrelenting down his cheeks.

 _No more of dad's crushing hugs._

 _No more of mom's annoyingly melodic greetings._

 _No sounds of the Fenton Works Lab._

 _No more fighting ghosts._

 _No more._

This was the end of everything familiar.

 _No more home._

Danny cried more than he'd ever done in his entire life. More than he thought was possible. Even after his voice gave out and the shaking subsided, the tears kept coming.

At some point he heard a knock at the door. He registered Mic saying that there was food for him if he was hungry, but he didn't reply. Mic didn't open the door or say anything else. So, Danny stayed where he was. Curled up against the wall, in a room that he'd trashed in a fit of rage. In some part of his mind he knew he should be sorry about that. The realization that he cared more about the fact that he'd ruined the crap Mic had spent money on, more than the rashness of his own outburst, was only mildly surprising. He was supposed to have better control of himself than this.

For at least one, solitary moment, he was glad he hadn't had access to his powers at the time.

Awareness was starting to seep back into his thoughts, slowly. Everything hurt. His head was pounding. His shoulder ached from the skin being stretched and moved too much. His foot wasn't as bad, but still throbbed. The pain meds likely wore off hours ago. His throat was sore. His eyes burned and felt crusty. His nose was still running and while the tightness in his chest had lessened considerably, but was determined to not let go entirely.

He felt raw. Like a nerve, exposed to the world.

He tried to breathe. He'd sit there for a few solid minutes, doing a decent enough job at existing. Breathing. Feeling his heart beat. Then another wave would hit him and he'd be back to squeezing his eyes shut and taking trembling breaths. The cycle just kept coming back around, draining him more and more each time.

At some point the sun came up.

The longer he sat there, the less time it took for him to start calming down after each wave crashed over him. He was beginning to recognize the numbness that had fallen over him earlier… or… yesterday, that is. It brought with it an exhaustion that Danny only vaguely recognized.

Not the kind of exhaustion he'd gotten used to with hunting ghosts at all hours of the day or night. No, this was different.

Years of Christmases dealing with the emotional whiplash and stress of his parent's yearly quarrel, flickered through his thoughts. It was the closest thing he could compare this to. The exhaustion from being so emotionally overwhelmed by everything going on and having no escape. Just having to wait out the holiday season before finally getting a break from all the yelling and stress.

Despite the memories less-than-cheerful-tone, his parent's presence in them still sent a pang of longing through his chest.

 _Wonder how long this season of suffering will last._

The thought of wildly swinging between numb fatigue and sobbing mess for any significant length of time was unappealing to say the very least. Some part of him knew that he was owed this. He deserved time. He should be allowed to… to feel all of this and… to grieve… Still, the idea of it was uncomfortable. He couldn't help the emotions that were cascading through him, but he could be annoyed with them on some level.

Eventually the dry, saltiness of his skin and the soreness all over made the desire for a shower too comforting to ignore. He pulled himself up against the wall, being careful about putting weight on his bandaged foot. He looked around for the crutches, finding one nearby and the other… right. He'd used that one to beat dents into the bedside table. At least until the crutch itself bent and became utterly useless.

He sighed and grabbed the remaining crutch from the corner. After rummaging through the bags and managing to find some clothes that he hadn't torn in two, Danny hobbled to the door. He turned the knob slowly, grateful that it remained silent. He cracked open the door and listened. The tv was on downstairs, the sounds drifting up to his room faintly. With any luck, Mic would be down there as well. Danny made to move, but froze when he glanced down.

A bowl of rice and some other… things… fish, probably, was waiting by the door.

Something squirmed in his gut at the sight, though he couldn't really place the emotion. Regardless, the food had long since gone cold and Danny was more focussed on getting clean at the moment. It was his only focus really.

 _One thing at a time._

He pushed the bowl to the side with a foot and hobbled as quietly as he could to the bathroom across the hall. Once he made it there and shut the door, the rest was left to muscle memory, more or less. He recognised the shapes of the labels and dials from the bathroom at Aizawa's apartment, so getting the shower going was easier than expected. The only struggle was working around his shoulder and ankle. Upon peeling back the dressing covering his shoulder, he found the burn still an angry red, but showing the first signs of scabbing over. He'd been burned enough times through his ghost hunting to recognize that this one would be fine, so long as he didn't scrub it or get soap near it. The ankle was another matter altogether, being much more badly burned and leaving him showering with said leg sticking out from behind the curtain and draped in a towel to prevent the bandage from getting wet.

By the time he finished and was dressed in clean clothes his stomach's grumbling was just on the verge of becoming painful. He'd never been the type to 'eat his feelings' as it were, but he wasn't one to starve himself in sorrow either. Besides, it was another, simple task he could put his thoughts on. Even if the thought of going downstairs and interacting with Mic made him want to curl up and hide from the world.

When he stepped out of the bathroom, the bowl in the hall had been removed. Instead, on a fold-out tv tray, sat a plate of fresh, hot food. The smell made his mouth water and that little, squirming feeling from before came back. Danny chose to ignore it, instead promising himself to thank Mic later. Carefully, he lifted the plate with the hand that wasn't on the crutch. A fleeting moment of pride welled up, when he managed to hobble into his room without spilling anything or tripping. He shuffled around the remains that littered the room and settled onto the bed to eat. The food was good, he noted, but he didn't really pay attention to what he was eating. Thinking too hard about anything felt like a chore and time felt like it was passing him by quicker than normal. He was already half done with his meal by the time he'd started thinking about it at all. Access to his ghost powers or not, they were still there and his metabolism was intent on reminding him of that as soon as he started shoveling food into his mouth. So he just sat there and ate.

He practically cleaned the plate, until he got to the odd lump of something that had been set next to a pile of rice. It had been the last thing on the plate and didn't really have a distinct smell to it, but it was food and Danny was still hungry, so he took a bite.

Instantly his mind was warped back to his family kitchen. Mom's pot roast. The last one she'd made before dad had started experimenting with ghosts possessing processed meat products. She'd cooked the dish later on, of course, but this one was one of her best attempts. The perfect seasonings and just the right amount of tenderness in the meat. Dad had complimented her cooking, as he always did. Jazz opted for a smoothie so she could go straight to her room and study. Danny had quickly shoveled as much as he could into his mouth as quickly as possible before hurrying out the door to beat the tar out of Skulker. Mom had tried to tell him not to rush, but he'd just waved her off and left. Ghost fighting took precedence over family dinner.

 _You took mom's cooking for granted too, huh._

He sniffed and the sound was too wet. His cheeks were wet too and the tightness in his chest was constricting him again. Robotically, he set the plate on the side table. His hands were shaking by the time he pulled his arms around himself. He'd thought he'd cried all he could already, but apparently not. He shook with quiet sobs and let his body slump onto the bed. With his back pressed against the wall and his face buried into a pillow, he let the sorrow engulf him once more.

At some point he knew he was falling asleep, but he didn't have the energy to fight it off. His whimpering fell silent and finally he calmed to a point where his body could rest. His limbs felt like lead and the fuzz in his head left him with no dreams, for which he was grateful. Some semi-conscious part of him noted that sleep felt amazing. He felt separated from his aches and burns, almost like he was floating next to his own body. Considering the number of out-of-body-experiences he'd had, the thought probably should have bothered him, but at the time he couldn't really see the harm in it.

At this rate the number of things that 'should' bother him were starting to stack up.

His drifting thoughts pulled him deeper into sleep and led him through the corridors of his mind. The image, he realized, was more like a line of floating doors in the Ghost Zone, than a hallway in a house. He passed by the doors without much thought. Ignoring the labels. Not wanting to linger on what lay beyond them or dredge up anymore triggering memories. He floated by, aimlessly at first. At some point though, he noticed his wandering had turned into tracking. A sound echoed through the nothing. Strange and alien. A steady pulse lured him further down the path and he was eager to find its source.

He shouldn't have been surprised.

An icy pond stretched out before him, lined with long dead trees, capped with snow and dripping long, sharp icicles. The ice layered over the pond was thick and sturdy. And it glowed. Deep in the center of the pond something pulsed with a green light. The only source of light, Danny noted. It gave everything in the clearing a greenish hue.

He stepped out onto the ice and the echoing sound seemed otherworldly. It didn't crack or or give under his weight, thick as it was, but it was as if the pond knew he was there. The alien sounds of the ice contracting and expanding hummed along his skin and drew him further out to the center. The pulsing feeling that had lured him here, beat slowly in time with the ebbing light. He knelt and let his bare hand rest against the surface of the ice.

Nothing happened.

The pulse didn't quicken. The sounds didn't shift or change. Nothing reacted to his presence. But he could feel it. The pulsing, he realized, beat in time with the warm rhythm in his chest. The instant he touched the ice he could feel the ghostly energy on the other side. _His_ energy. His ghost half.

Instinctively he tried to reach out to it, like he always did, but of course it wasn't _there_. It was _here_. Trapped under the ice. He wanted so badly to grab it. To break through and let that energy flow over him. The comforting, familiar feeling. He wanted that familiarity. He needed it.

His fists made no sound as he pounded them against the ice.

When had he started punching the ice?

Did it matter?

Frustration needled him, like pin pricks under his skin. He tried kicking and scratching and clawing at the ice, but not so much as a shard gave way. The energy trapped below didn't respond either. He recalled, very distinctly, the first time he'd noticed his ghost powers had been cut off from him, the feeling of his ghostly aura reaching out to him. Searching. Aching to be returned to him.

Now it just sat there. Curled up under the ice. Unable to hear or see or feel his presence.

It hadn't waned in power though.

In fact, looking around at the size of the pond, and the glow that emanated from below, he was struck by the realization that this was bigger than it had been before. The ghostly energy was still thriving. Growing. Hoarding power and not having even his ghost sense to drain bits of it away.

He wondered if it would continue to grow, or if it would reach a point where the glass was filled. Would the energy fill the pond and stop there, or would this image shift to accommodate the energy that was out of his control? Would he come back to find a lake next time? Or an ocean?

 _How do you control an ocean?_

The thought sent a chill down his spine and all at once the silence hit him. The sounds of the ice in the clearing had stopped. The glowing light no longer pulsed. Danny looked down and, though the energy below had no form or shape, he could feel it looking right at him. It knew he was there. It could feel his concern. His unease.

 _You should be scared._

'But I'm not.' he thought.

It wasn't a lie. The realization almost shocked him, but it was true. He was unsure and worried about the inevitability of his powers returning to him and how he would handle it. But the power was still his. It was still a part of him. He didn't fear it. He just… didn't want to lose control of it… again. He was wary and cautious. But not scared.

 _Good._

A clinking sound reached his ears and Danny bolted upright.

Mic cursed under his breath, nearly dropping the plate he'd come to retrieve. The room was dark. The sun had set and Danny had no clue how long he'd been asleep.

"Jeez, kid. You're gonna give _me_ a heart attack if you keep waking up like that." Mic whisper-yelled.

Danny took a moment to catch his breath and look around the room. He blinked. He blinked again. Why was everything so dark? Normally his eyes naturally adjusted to the dark. His ghost powers taking over on instinct to help him see.

Oh… right...

As if in response, Mic picked up an object off the floor, set it on the bedside table and clicked it on. Light flooded from the lamp and filled the room instantly. Danny had to cover his eyes at the sudden shift from too dark to too light.

"Sorry." Mic said. "Just trying to get this out of here." He lifted the plate in his hand, still sporting a little pile of untouched beef stuff. "Don't want to attract bugs, ya know."

"Yeah…" Danny breathed, moving his hand now that his eyes were starting to adjust to the light.

Mic took a step back, looking around the room and appearing very uncomfortable. Which struck Danny as odd, seeing as this was Mic's house. Probably a testament to how alien Danny's presence made the home feel. Then again, he couldn't think of many people who were comfortable with a ghost in their home.

"I brought this up like, six hours ago." Mic said, nodding at the plate. "If you're hungry again I can cook you something else. Maybe something more… american? If you want."

Danny blinked. "You cook?"

"Well yeah. I live by myself and the only guest I regularly have over is Shouta and, as you may have noticed, his cooking skills leave much to be desired."

Danny nodded, avoiding looking the man in the eye as the fogginess of the dream finally left his mind. His eyes drifted to the floor, taking in all the damage from the day before. He really should make an effort to clean that up. If nothing else, it'd make hobbling around with the damn crutch easier.

"I could eat." Danny admitted.

"Alright. You want me to bring something up to you?" Mic asked.

The offer of further privacy was thoughtful, but also held a dilemma. Just the thought of awkwardly maneuvering down the stairs sounded equal parts annoying and embarrassing, but staying in the room meant being alone with his thoughts and staring at the damage he'd caused. Neither were appealing, per say, but one was less stressful than the other.

Danny shuffled to the edge of the bed and reached for the still functional crutch.

"Can I watch TV downstairs?" Danny asked.

"Sure." Mic shrugged. "So long as you don't leave the property, you're free to explore the house all you want. The tv, food, extra blankets, whatever you need, you can just take. You don't have to ask permission to use anything."

Gratitude warred with suspicion in Danny's gut, but the hazy numbness made them both relatively easy to set aside. He nodded in acknowledgement. "Thanks."

Mic led the way down the hall and towards the stairs. He didn't say anything as Danny took an eternity to wobble down the stairs. He didn't seem bothered or impatient or troubled by Danny in the slightest. He just hovered a few steps ahead, ready to catch the teen if he slipped. Danny wanted to be annoyed, but he didn't have the energy for it.

Apparently, sleeping for six-ish hours did nothing for his mental exhaustion.

Once he'd managed to make it to the first floor, Danny followed Mic to the living room. The room was spacious and sported a high ceiling and light, creamy colors, accented with dark reds here and there. A huge red sectional couch wrapped around the center of the room and faced a massive flat screen tv. On either side of the tv, shelves were set into the wall sporting a very sleek looking soundsystem and hundreds of movies, cds and even a collection of records. Off in the corner, next to a vivid red leather chair, sat an equally sleek record player, no doubt hooked up to the same sound system. Mic handed Danny the remote and strolled over to the kitchen. The two spaces were separated by a breakfast bar, but the open floor plan left little to the imagination.

"You weren't kidding when you said you were financially secure." Danny said, settling onto the couch.

"'Secure' is putting it mildly." Mic admits with a laugh. "I'm no millionaire by any means, but it's not like an added teenager is gonna break the bank either."

From the kitchen Danny could make out an upbeat humming in-between the sounds of pans and cutlery being fished out of cabinets and drawers. The whole kitchen looked sleek and modern and he was actually kind of impressed at how every available space was used to its maximum potential. Glossy, black cabinets swung closed without a sound and everything was way more organized and lived in than the kitchen back at Aizawa's apartment. Furthermore, Mic seemed surprisingly comfortable as he moved about the kitchen. Not quite his element, he still stopped once or twice muttering to himself as he glanced around looking for things, but at least familiar with the task.

 _Kind of like Jazz, in their kitchen back home._

Danny felt the air woosh out of his lungs as the thought hit him. Jazz wasn't much of a cook, but between the ecto-radiated food and his parent's tendency to forget about meals when they were in their lab for too long, she'd been the one to make sure Danny didn't go without dinner more than a few times. She'd make sandwiches, salads, even soup when it was cold out. Nothing too complex, but enough to get by. Especially after he got his powers and started eating more. That was probably the only aspect of her overprotective habits that he did truly appreciate, since going without a meal left his body running on fumes for longer than the average person.

"Kid?" The voice was hesitant and far closer than it should have been.

Danny gasped and looked up to see Mic standing next to the couch, one hand raised towards him, lingering in the space between them. Concern radiated off of him and Danny wondered how long he'd been sitting there, staring at the remote in his hands. He blinked, forcing the tears back and taking a deep breath before daring to open his mouth.

"Sorry. Zoned out." he mumbled, his voice sounding disturbingly hollow to his own ears.

Mic hummed and reached for the remote, wordlessly flicking on the tv.

"Any preferences? Cartoons? Gameshows? Documentaries?"

Danny just shook his head, not wanting to hear his own voice again.

"Alright then." Mic said, settling on a channel and leaving the remote on the armrest next to Danny. "Feel free to change it if you get bored. I won't mind." he assured as he turned and made his way back to the kitchen.

Danny hardly paid attention to what was playing on the screen. Wasn't like he could understand what they were saying anyways. If he had to guess he would have assumed it was a sitcom of some sort, though he realized later the absence of a laugh track likely meant it was something else. Heck, tv shows could be totally different here. He didn't know and in all honesty he really didn't care.

He spent the next half hour battling with his thoughts. Forcing himself to steer clear of any thoughts of home or his life back in Amity, but also trying to avoid being too present as well. Being present meant feeling his injuries flare up and, while the physical pain was better than the emotional onslaught, he still wasn't keen on the feeling either. Paying attention to the nonsensical action on the screen only made him feel frustrated, so he tried to keep from sinking too far into that chasm as well. Not for the first time, he longed to feel that numbness take him over again. To just feel nothing while the time passed so that he could move on to the next thing.

Footsteps broke him from his near constant mental battle and he looked over to see Mic walking back with a couple of bowls and two glass bottles in hand.

"It's not gormei by a long shot, but it's an easy dish that I remember being popular in the states." he said, setting the bowls on the coffee table and handing Danny one of the bottles.

Danny took it, raising a skeptical brow.

"What?"

"Is this… I mean… It looks like a beer." Danny said.

Mic snickered, clearly trying to hold back a laugh. "You really think I'm the type of guy to give a minor alcohol?" He shook his head. "It's cola, kid. Soda? Pop? Fizzy drink?"

"Yeah. Yeah. Alright, I get it." Danny said, waving his hand absently. "Just used to soda's coming in cans more often than bottles." He took a hesitant sip of the already opened bottle, pleasantly surprised at how familiar it tasted. Almost like a grocery store brand of soda. His eyes finally skipped over to the bowl in front of him and widened in recognition. "Mac N' Cheese? Really?"

Mic shrugged, already digging into his bowl with a spoon. "Like I said, it's easy to make."

Danny's lips twitched at that as he scooped up his bowl. The two ate in relative silence, absently watching the characters on the screen. Danny ended up scarfing down his portion in no time at all. No sooner had he set his bowl down on the table than Mic was scooping it up, striding into the kitchen and then returning with the same bowl full of pasta once more. He didn't comment. Neither of them did. For that, Danny was grateful. By the time Danny had finished his third helping, he finally felt sated and let himself relax on the couch.

With a full belly and a comfortable couch, he could feel the waves of exhaustion washing over him as Mic cleared away the evidence of their meal. Too late, Danny thought of offering to help with the dishes. It would have been the least he could do.

 _Why? It's not like he's allowed to let you starve._

Danny shifted in his seat. The idea that Present Mic was only doing any of this because he had to, wasn't a new thought. But it still didn't feel… accurate. He couldn't really define it, but there was a different vibe here. Sympathy, and most likely pity, seeped into every action the older man had taken. He felt sorry for Danny and, yeah, while Danny prefered to avoid people seeing him through that kind of lense, it was already way better than feeling like a burden. At least here he didn't feel like a nuisance.

"Kid?"

Danny blinked and looked up, his eyelids feeling heavier than before.

"Zoning out again?" Mic asked.

Danny shrugged with his good shoulder. "Just thinking."

Mic nodded, but didn't walk away. He shifted from foot to foot and glanced at the clock on the opposite wall. Danny followed his gaze and cringed at the time. Maybe _he_ had gotten a nap earlier, but he doubted _Mic_ had.

"Sorry for keeping you up late."

"Huh? Oh. No, that's no big deal, kid." Mic assured him. "I got no reason to be up early tomorrow anyways. No, what I… I figured I'd…" He sighed and grumbled something in Japanese. "Look, if you wanna talk about any of this, you can always come talk to me. And if you're not cool with that, I can arrange for someone else to come by."

"Like a therapist?" Danny deadpanned.

"Like a friend." Mic turned his head and finally met Danny's gaze. "I get that none of this is going to be easy and it really does suck that all of this has happened to you. But you can't keep bottling it all up like you have been."

"... I know." Danny whispered, pulling his gaze away and staring down into his hands in his lap. "Not tonight?"

Mic sighed. "Not until you're comfortable. The last thing I'm gonna do is force you to do anything you don't absolutely have to. But it is something you should at least consider, yeah?"

"... yeah."

Danny released a heavy sigh, feeling his shoulders slump more out of exhaustion than any kind of relief. He sat forward and grabbed his crutch, carefully shifting so that he could stand up. He swayed slightly and instantly Mic had a hand on his arm, helping to steady him.

"I've got it." Danny snapped.

He winced at the loudness of his own voice and watched Mic pull away hesitantly.

"Sorry." Danny mumbled. "Sorry, I- I didn't mean-"

"It's okay, kid." Mic assured him. "I should've asked first."

Danny shuffled around for a moment until he got the crutch situated and started to move towards the stairs.

"I'm not trying to be difficult." he admitted.

"I didn't think you were." Mic said, following a few steps behind as they neared the stairs.

The pair staggered up the stairs in silence, Mic always an arms length away, just in case Danny lost his footing or something equally stupid. Not for the first time, Danny thought this would be a heck of a lot easier if he could just float up to his room. At the top of the stairs Danny paused, taking a moment to feel for his ghost core. It didn't take as much effort, now that he knew _where_ it was… sort of. Still there. Still out of reach.

"You alright, kid?" Mic asked.

Danny nodded, only just now realizing he was breathing a little heavier.

"Yeah. I uh… Not really used to actually having to _walk_ up stairs. Normally I just fly up and phase through the floor of my room." He said. A pang of longing threatened to wash over him at the thought of his room back home, but he quickly pushed it back. Latching onto a passing idea and speaking before he could think about it too much. Already limping down the hall as he spoke. "I mean, I guess you could argue that none of this is really normal for me. Like, yeah my powers are kind of a lot compared to what you guys are used to, but that also means that without them I'm cut off from a lot of their more subtle effects. The quicker healing. The energy boost. Optional weightlessness. Like, a few months back I'm pretty sure I broke my ankle or sprained it or something and I couldn't go to a hospital for obvious reasons. My healing factor healed me up way quicker than a normal person, but being able to float just above the floor and keep weight off it helped a lot too. Plus the ice powers make for an instant cold-pack literally anywhere." Danny rambled.

Mic didn't seem to mind his sudden word-vomit, nodding quietly as he spoke. "Makes sense. Shouta's used his quirk on me before, but it's not like my quirk is used for casual day-to-day living, so I can't really relate." he admitted. "Sounds more than a little annoying, though."

"Yeah." Danny huffed. "Understatement of the century."

They finally made it to his room and Danny pushed open the door. He winced at the sight, once again feeling a bit embarrassed at the state of the room. At the moment, however, he was way too tired to do anything about it.

"If you need anything you know where to find me." Mic said. "Or, feel free to text if that's easier."

Danny looked over his shoulder sheepishly. "I uh… kinda threw the phone you gave me behind Aizawa's couch before the whole heist thing…" he admitted.

Present Mic smirked and nodded in the direction of something behind Danny. "Top drawer of the side table." he stated. "Charger's in there too. Good night."

Before Danny could say anything more, the older man left, closing the door quietly as he went. Sure enough, the phone he'd been gifted was sitting in the drawer. Dead, but unharmed. Danny quickly went about plugging the phone in to charge and shuffled into some pajamas before crawling under the covers. It took hardly any time at all before he was sound asleep.

He didn't stay asleep for long.

Danny jolted upright in bed, his ears ringing as the nightmare played in snippets behind his eyes over and over again. He'd been running, trying desperately to reach something that only ever seemed to get farther away. Then the feeling had shifted, warped so that he was running away from something. Something chasing him. Fear clawed at his heart as the darkness erupted in flames and suddenly he was burning. His skin stung and he couldn't breathe and he was acutely aware of his heart no longer beating.

He sucked in a desperate breath and blinked hard.

He raised a trembling hand to his chest.

His heart was beating. It was racing, in fact. Too hard. Too fast.

Again he tried to breathe, this time feeling his lungs stretch with the much needed air.

The burn on his shoulder screamed as he shifted with the intake. He coughed out a breath, hissing as the pain continued to pull him back towards the waking world. He was alive. There was no fire. He was in Present Mic's fancy house, in the guest room he had strashed yesterday. Or… was it the day before? He'd slept and woken again so many times in an unknown number of hours, he really wasn't sure what day it was anymore.

Once his breathing was steady he cracked open his eyes. The sun was up, though based on the color of the light, he figured it wasn't too terribly late in the morning. That was… better than expected. If he managed to stay up all day he might just get his sleep schedule back on track. That would at least be a step in the right direction. Even if he didn't know where that direction led to at the moment.

However, sitting in bed doing nothing was not an option.

His eyes swept around the trashed bedroom and his mind was made up. He slid his legs out from under the covers and tested his weight on the bad leg. It still stung, but it was more manageable than yesterday. Slowly, he hobbled over and started to pick up the clothes that were strewn all over the floor. Before long he had two piles. Ripped clothing in one heap. Intact clothing in the other. He then set about folding everything that wasn't shredded and sorting them into piles. He put away the clothes and what couldn't be salvaged was stuffed into one of the bags and left in a corner.

That done and his mind considerably calmer, Danny decided he might as well get dressed and try to find some food. He threw on some jeans and a t-shirt and shuffled his way down the stairs. Mic was on the phone in the living room. He waved at Danny as he walked past to get to the kitchen. It took him a minute to find something that didn't require cooking, but eventually Danny snagged a bag of chips and a soda from the fridge.

"I can make you something a little nicer to eat if you want." Mic offered as he ended his call.

Danny shook his head. "Kinda craving junk food, to be honest."

"Works for me. We will need to change your bandages though."

"I can do it."

"You sure? The last thing you want is for that shoulder to get infected, just because you can't reach-"

"Shoulder's already scabbed over." Danny said, popping another chip into his mouth. "Foot's the only thing I gotta re-bandage and I can do that on my own." He paused his chewing for a moment, thinking over what he'd just said. "Thanks for the offer though."

"Just tryin' to help, kid. The first aid stuff is in the bathroom upstairs. Be sure to use that balm in the red tube. Oh and one more thing." he said, turning and walking into the kitchen. When he came back he set a pair of pills down with a glass of water. "Pain meds. Nothing too strong, but it should take the edge off. Still wanna stay off that leg as much as possible though."

"Got it." Danny nodded.

Mic strode out of the room and Danny quickly downed the pills. He wasn't in a ton of pain, but he wanted to be able to move around more today so preemptively managing that was probably the best idea for now. Besides, he doubted redressing the burn on his foot was going to be a fun experience.

Once Danny's stomach was no longer growling for food, he hobbled back upstairs. As predicted, tending to the burn on his leg involved a lot of hushed swearing and slow movements. The one on his shoulder was a breeze by comparison. By the time he'd finished he was already feeling like taking a nap, but that would ruin the whole sleep schedule plan, so he stubbornly hobbled back to his room and set back to work cleaning things up.

He moved in a haze, forcing himself to focus on the task right in front of him and thinking only absently about where to put this or that. The instant his thoughts tried to stray back towards home or anything familiar, he pulled himself back to the present. Even if he wasn't the best at distracting himself, he at least managed not to have a breakdown while he went about cleaning the room. Small victories, he guessed.

Three hours and two bags of broken junk later and the room finally looked like an actual bedroom, if a bit sparse. The only thing Danny couldn't really tend to was the dents in the drywall, which… yeah… not his proudest moment. He figured he could apologize for that later, when he brought the junk bags downstairs. Now that his task was done though, the exhaustion was weighing down on him again.

He glanced at the phone on the nightstand.

4:00 pm.

Danny hummed. Maybe a short nap wouldn't be so bad, he thought. He was already losing the fight to keep his eyes open and at this rate he was liable to just slump against the wall. Experience reminded him that that was always a horrible place to pass out. So he flopped down on top of the covers and set an alarm on his phone for one hour. By then, he expected, Mic would probably be prepping something for dinner.

Too late he remembered the nightmare from that morning and realized he was likely to have more nightmares for a while. But he was already fading and he couldn't feel the stinging in his leg anymore and that was too nice of a feeling to fight.

The darkness morphed and undulated in a way that reminded him distinctly of the Ghost Zone. Kind of goopy, but feeling lighter than air at the same time. A coolness settled around him. He could feel it through the jumpsuit. That familiar feeling of death and static in the air. He floated forward, not recognizing this part of the Zone, but not feeling too concerned either. Tucker and Sam could always use the Boo-Merang to find him, or go to Frostbite and borrow the Map.

Until then, he could wait it out… wherever he was.

"Danny?"

Danny turned.

Jazz was standing a few feet away. Just standing there. Standing on nothing, surrounded by a pulsating emptiness. Watching him. She looked exactly like he remembered. She looked worried and perhaps a little bit scared. Something in his gut twisted at the thought of her being upset. He knew she was worried about him. She only ever worried about him, he thought. It was his fault she was upset.

"Jazz?" Danny called, reaching out towards her.

She didn't seem to notice him, staring in his direction, but looking right through him.

"Danny, where are you?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper. "Where did you go?"

"Jazz, I'm right here." Danny said, floating closer to her. "Look at me. I'm-"

He reached out and touched her arm.

And suddenly everything shifted.

A crushing weight of fear knocked the wind out of him and instantly the nothingness around him dribbled away like oil. Around him he recognized the buildings of Amity Park, though they weren't… quite right. Some loomed larger than he was used to. Others were barely recognizable. Nothing more than crumbling brick and skeletal steel beams. There was a thick, green cloud hanging in the air, keeping him from seeing more than twenty feet in any direction.

And the fear.

The fear was paralyzing.

And all at once, Danny realized he wasn't in his ghost form.

Gravity felt too heavy. His heart was racing. All his hair was standing on end and the chill that danced across his skin had nothing to do with the temperature.

"Danny?"

Danny whipped around, but this time there was no face to match with the voice.

"Danny!" someone shouted.

He turned and caught sight of a shadow in the green mist, but it vanished before he could even make out a silhouette.

"Phantom!"

He spun 'round again, but the shadow was gone and another voice rose up over his shoulder. Then another. And another.

"Danny?"

"Daniel."

"Phantom?"

"Phantom!"

"Fenton!"

"DANNY!"

It was a cacophony of voices. People calling for him. Some of the voices were distressingly familiar. People he knew. Others weren't. But they all knew him. They knew him and needed him. They asked. They screamed. They growled. And the fear that kept him rooted to the spot only grew as the mist began to ripple and spin and warp everything around him.

Then everything went still.

Everything was quiet.

Something sent a chill up his spine and Danny turned.

Jazz was standing there once more.

She wasn't scared this time. Worse… she looked angry. That restrained kind of anger that said that she was holding back something a lot more volatile.

"You ruined it." she hissed.

"Jazz?" he asked, feeling the dread building up again.

"All you had to do was wait." she said, straining to keep her voice even. "If you had just waited, none of this would be happening." She gestured an arm out around her, but all he could see was fog.

"I don't understand. I didn't… I didn't mean-"

"Don't give me that!" she shouted.

Danny flinched back.

"You've never been patient." she accused. "You've never been able to think past your actions. You never consider the consequences. You just charge right in with whatever idea you got in your head first and hope that everything goes fine. Well, look where that got us this time!"

She threw her arms wide and this time the mist flew away.

Danny's eyes went wide as the burned out ruins of Amity came into focus. Buildings demolished. Trees burned down to the stump. Ghosts flitted all around and here and there he could see bodies. In the street. In pieces. Some burned. Some twisted in horrifying ways. Something about the bodies seemed familiar. Like he'd seen these horrors before. But this time they wore new faces.

Faces they didn't have the first time.

Faces he recognised.

Faces of people he had saved before.

Unseeing, dead eyes stared back at him.

"You left us." Jazz accused, drawing his attention back to her.

"I didn't mean to."

"You never do." she shot back. "This," she gestured to the destruction all around them, "is all your fault. Look what you've done. You left and now everything's gone. Everyone is dead because of you."

"No…" Danny whimpered, unable to catch his breath.

Why couldn't he breathe?

Jazz stalked forward, her eyes beginning to glow in an eerie red. Her whole body started to glow. And fade. And Danny's ghost sense was going off and he stared at his sister's angry, red eyes as she loomed over him.

"You better enjoy your new home, Danny." she hissed, sounding nothing like he had ever heard before. "Because of you, there's nothing left for you to come back to."

She lunged forward and dug her claws into his shoulder.

Danny screamed, but no sound came out.

He sat up and gasped, but no air seemed to make it to his lungs.

The nothingness was back.

All around him was black and nothing and-

But…

No.

He could see shapes this time. Steady, unmoving shapes in the darkness. Walls and furniture. The faintest traces of light from… somewhere. He couldn't see. He couldn't breathe. His hands were shaking and he couldn't access his ghost powers to see in the dark and he was barely able to take a wheezing breath. He shut his eyes. He had to focus. He had to breathe.

He tried to inhale, but the air wouldn't come. His throat felt too tight. Too wet. He swallowed and tried again. This time he managed a shaky breath. Not great. But something. He tried again. And again. Getting a little more air into his lungs each time and breathing out as steadily as he could manage. Which wasn't very steady by really anyone's standards.

He pulled a still shaking hand up to his chest. His heart was racing. He could feel it beating frantically against his ribs and the damp shirt that clung to his skin. He was covered in a sheen of sweat and only now did he realize he felt way too hot. Instinctively he reached out for his ice powers, but nothing happened.

Right.

Ankle cuff.

House arrest.

Japan.

His actual memories steadily rushed over him. They didn't soften the blow of the nightmare, but they gave him something else to think about while he was still trying to just exist.

When he was finally sure that he could stand to move, he looked up and took in the room once more. He blinked. His eyes were warm and wet. His cheeks were damp too. It was dark. Night had fallen. Why hadn't his alarm gone off?

He turned towards the nightstand and scooped up his phone. The alarm app flickered to life and instantly he saw the issue. He'd set it for 5:00 am. He let out a frustrated sigh and turned the useless alarm off, turning his attention to the current time. 11:36 pm.

He probably missed dinner.

His stomach growled and he nearly jumped at the sudden sound. He was too damn twitchy. Too wound up. Too hot.

He stood, hissing slightly as he put weight on his bad leg, and shuffled to the chest of drawers. He pulled out some sweats, underwear and a clean shirt and made a bee line for the bathroom. He turned the water on cold, stripped down and hopped in, only just remembering to keep his leg out. He stood there for a long while, just letting the cool water run over his skin. Even cut off from his ghost powers, the cold was still a welcomed relief compared to the heat. His breaths came easier. His hands stopped shaking. The burn on his shoulder ceased its screaming. His pulse began to slow and the longer he stood under the spray the more grounded he felt.

When he finally started to shiver, he turned the water to lukewarm and set about actually cleaning himself. At least at this rate, he wasn't likely to waste all of Mic's hot water, he thought. By the time he stepped out of the shower and threw on the clean clothes, the nightmare had faded. It was still there. Still shouting at him and begging for his attention, but he could ignore it better. He could breath and focus on other things. Like taking his gross, sweaty clothes back to his room to toss in the hamper. After that…

One thing at a time.

He stepped out of the bathroom and the sound of the TV drifted up from down stairs. The voice didn't sound overly enthusiastic, so he doubted it was another gameshow. Still, he was kind of surprised Mic was up so late. Especially since he'd kept him up the night before.

Danny hobbled into his room, tossed the clothes in the hamper and grabbed his crutch.

By the time he made it down the stairs his stomach was aching for food. He limped through the living room, past Mic, who was standing watching the TV. Danny opened the fridge and grabbed some kind of pastry thing that looked like he could eat it without having to attempt cooking something. He bit into the fluffy danish-thing and quickly took a second bite. It was good. Kind of sweet, but not overly so. A mild flavor. Mild he could handle. He opened up the cabinet he'd seen Mic get a glass from earlier and filled a cup of water from the tap.

"Hey, Mic." he asked, glad that his voice didn't sound unsteady or hoarse. "What are these?" He gestured in Mic's direction with the pastry before taking another bite.

Mic didn't answer.

Danny took a sip of his water and looked up towards the living room. Present Mic was standing in front of the couch, staring at the TV, one hand over his mouth. He was still as a statue and Danny was certain he hadn't heard him. Cautiously, Danny took a few limping steps into the living room and looked at the TV.

Aerial footage of a forest set ablaze with blue flames covered the large screen. Japanese text scrolled underneath the footage and a voice was speaking overtop. It was a news reel. And, judging by Mic's reaction, it wasn't something from a film or tv show.

"Mic?" Danny asked, once he'd gotten a bit closer.

Mic whipped his head around, seeming to notice Danny for the first time since he'd come downstairs.

"Hey." he said, his eyes a bit wider than normal. He stared at Danny for a moment, then quickly turned his gaze back to the television. Danny did the same, though his eyes eventually drifted back to the man in front of him. He'd never seen Present Mic… scared before.

"What's going on?" he asked, tentatively.

"The camp." Mic said after a long pause. "The training camp. The…" he mumbled something in Japanese. "The one Aizawa took his class on."

Danny's eyes widened as he realized what Mic was saying.

"That's…"

"The camp's been attacked." Mic said.

The two stood there in silence, staring at the TV as the news footage continued.

"Is Aizawa okay?" Danny asked before he could stop the words from coming out.

"I don't know."


End file.
